1. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 3.23 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 3.23. וָאֶתְחַנַּן אֶל־יְהוָה בָּעֵת הַהִוא לֵאמֹר׃ | 3.23. And I besought the LORD at that time, saying:" |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Exodus, 15.20 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 15.20. And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances." |
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3. Hebrew Bible, Genesis, 40.12 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 40.12. וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ יוֹסֵף זֶה פִּתְרֹנוֹ שְׁלֹשֶׁת הַשָּׂרִגִים שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים הֵם׃ | 40.12. And Joseph said unto him: ‘This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days;" |
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4. Hebrew Bible, Numbers, 11.16, 15.31 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 11.16. וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה אֶסְפָה־לִּי שִׁבְעִים אִישׁ מִזִּקְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר יָדַעְתָּ כִּי־הֵם זִקְנֵי הָעָם וְשֹׁטְרָיו וְלָקַחְתָּ אֹתָם אֶל־אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְהִתְיַצְּבוּ שָׁם עִמָּךְ׃ 15.31. כִּי דְבַר־יְהוָה בָּזָה וְאֶת־מִצְוָתוֹ הֵפַר הִכָּרֵת תִּכָּרֵת הַנֶּפֶשׁ הַהִוא עֲוֺנָה בָהּ׃ | 11.16. And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Gather unto Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tent of meeting, that they may stand there with thee." 15.31. Because he hath despised the word of the LORD, and hath broken His commandment; that soul shall utterly be cut off, his iniquity shall be upon him." |
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5. Hebrew Bible, 2 Samuel, 12.9, 12.13-12.14 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 12.9. מַדּוּעַ בָּזִיתָ אֶת־דְּבַר יְהוָה לַעֲשׂוֹת הָרַע בעינו [בְּעֵינַי] אֵת אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי הִכִּיתָ בַחֶרֶב וְאֶת־אִשְׁתּוֹ לָקַחְתָּ לְּךָ לְאִשָּׁה וְאֹתוֹ הָרַגְתָּ בְּחֶרֶב בְּנֵי עַמּוֹן׃ 12.13. וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל־נָתָן חָטָאתִי לַיהוָה וַיֹּאמֶר נָתָן אֶל־דָּוִד גַּם־יְהוָה הֶעֱבִיר חַטָּאתְךָ לֹא תָמוּת׃ 12.14. אֶפֶס כִּי־נִאֵץ נִאַצְתָּ אֶת־אֹיְבֵי יְהוָה בַּדָּבָר הַזֶּה גַּם הַבֵּן הַיִּלּוֹד לְךָ מוֹת יָמוּת׃ | 12.9. Why hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriyya the Ĥittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of ῾Ammon." 12.13. And David said to Natan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Natan said to David, The Lord also has commuted thy sin; thou shalt not die." 12.14. Howbeit because by this deed thou hast greatly blasphemed the Lord, the child also that is born to thee shall surely die." |
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6. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.25, 2.145, 2.161-2.162 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.25. However, our admirable author Apion hath before told us, that “they came to Judea in six days’ time;” and again, that “Moses went up to a mountain that lay between Egypt and Arabia, which was called Sinai, and was concealed there forty days, and that when he came down from thence he gave laws to the Jews.” But then, how was it possible for them to tarry forty days in a desert place where there was no water, and at the same time to pass all over the country between that and Judea in the six days? 2.25. 36. Wherefore it deserves our inquiry what should be the occasion of this unjust management, and of these scandals about the Deity. And truly I suppose it to be derived from the imperfect knowledge the heathen legislators had at first of the true nature of God; nor did they explain to the people even so far as they did comprehend of it: nor did they compose the other parts of their political settlements according to it 2.145. 15. But now, since Apollonius Molo, and Lysimachus, and some others, write treatises about our lawgiver Moses, and about our laws, which are neither just nor true, and this partly out of ignorance, but chiefly out of ill will to us, while they calumniate Moses as an impostor and deceiver, and pretend that our laws teach us wickedness, but nothing that is virtuous, I have a mind to discourse briefly, according to my ability, about our whole constitution of government, and about the particular branches of it; 2.161. and this is the character of our legislator; he was no impostor, no deceiver, as his revilers say, though unjustly, but such a one as they brag Minos to have been among the Greeks, and other legislators after him; 2.162. for some of them suppose that they had their laws from Jupiter, while Minos said that the revelation of his laws was to be referred to Apollo, and his oracle at Delphi, whether they really thought they were so derived, or supposed, however, that they could persuade the people easily that so it was; |
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7. New Testament, Romans, 3.28 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 3.28. We maintain therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. |
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8. New Testament, Matthew, 23.2 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 23.2. saying, "The scribes and the Pharisees sat on Moses' seat. |
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9. Tosefta, Sotah, 7.12, 11.8 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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10. Anon., Leviticus Rabba, 7.2, 30.2, 31.4 (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
| 7.2. זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה וגו' (תהלים נא, יט), זַבְדִּי בֶּן לֵוִי וְרַבִּי יוֹסֵי בֶּן פֶּטְרָס וְרַבָּנָן, חַד אָמַר, אָמַר דָּוִד לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֲנִי כָּבַשְׁתִּי אֶת יִצְרִי וְעָשִׂיתִי תְּשׁוּבָה לְפָנֶיךָ, אִם אַתָּה מְקַבְּלֵנִי בִּתְשׁוּבָה הֲרֵי יוֹדֵעַ אֲנִי שֶׁשְּׁלֹמֹה בְּנִי עוֹמֵד וּבוֹנֶה אֶת בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ וּבוֹנֶה אֶת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ וּמַקְטִיר עָלָיו אֶת הַקָּרְבָּנוֹת שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה, מִן הָדֵין קְרָיָא: זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה. וָחֳרָנָא אָמַר מִנַיִן לְמִי שֶׁהוּא עוֹשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה שֶׁמַּעֲלִין עָלָיו כְּאִלּוּ עָלָה לִירוּשָׁלַיִם וּבָנָה אֶת בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ וּבָנָה אֶת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ וּמַקְרִיב עָלָיו כָּל הַקָּרְבָּנוֹת שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה, מִן הָדֵין קְרָיָא: זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה, וְרַבָּנִין אָמְרֵי מִנַּיִן לְעוֹבֵר לִפְנֵי הַתֵּבָה שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לְהַזְכִּיר עֲבוֹדָה וְקָרְבָּנוֹת וְלָשֹׁחַ, מִן הֲדָא בִּרְכָתָא, רְצֵה אֱלֹהֵינוּ שְׁכֹן בְּצִיּוֹן מְהֵרָה יַעַבְדוּךָ בָּנֶיךָ. אִית דְּבָעֵי מַשְׁמַעְנָא מִן הֲדָא, זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה. אָמַר רַבִּי אַבָּא בַּר יוּדָן כָּל מַה שֶׁפָּסַל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בִּבְהֵמָה הִכְשִׁיר בְּאָדָם, פָּסַל בִּבְהֵמָה (ויקרא כב, כב): עֲוֶרֶת אוֹ שָׁבוּר אוֹ חָרוּץ אוֹ יַבֶּלֶת, וְהִכְשִׁיר בְּאָדָם (תהלים נא, יט): לֵב נִשְׁבָּר וְנִדְכֶּה. אָמַר רַבִּי אֲלֶכְּסַנְדְּרִי הַהֶדְיוֹט הַזֶּה אִם מְשַׁמֵּשׁ הוּא בְּכֵלִים שְׁבוּרִים גְּנַאי הוּא לוֹ, אֲבָל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא כְּלֵי תַּשְׁמִישׁוֹ שְׁבוּרִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים לד, יט): קָרוֹב ה' לְנִשְׁבְּרֵי לֵב, (תהלים קמז, ג): הָרוֹפֵא לִשְׁבוּרֵי לֵב, (ישעיה נז, טו): וְאֶת דַּכָּא וּשְׁפַל רוּחַ. זִבְחֵי אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ נִשְׁבָּרָה לֵב נִשְׁבָּר, רַבִּי אַבָּא בַּר יוּדָן בְּשֵׁם רַבִּי יוּדָא בַּר רַבִּי סִימוֹן, מָשָׁל לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁהָיָה מְהַלֵּךְ בַּמִּדְבָּר, וּבָא אוֹהֲבוֹ וְכִבְּדוֹ בְּכַלְכָּלָה אַחַת שֶׁל תְּאֵנִים וְחָבִית אַחַת שֶׁל יַיִן, אָמַר לוֹ זֶה כִּבּוּד גָּדוֹל, אָמַר לוֹ אֲדוֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ לְפִי שָׁעָה כִּבַּדְתִּיךָ, אֲבָל כְּשֶׁאַתָּה נִכְנַס לְתוֹךְ פָּלָטִין שֶׁלְךָ, אַתָּה רוֹאֶה כַּמָּה אֲנִי מְכַבְּדֶךָ. כָּךְ אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְיִשְׂרָאֵל (ויקרא ו, ב): זֹאת תּוֹרַת הָעֹלָה הִוא הָעֹלָה, אָמְרוּ לְפָנָיו רִבּוֹן הָעוֹלָמִים לְפִי שָׁעָה הִקְרַבְנוּ לְפָנֶיךָ, אֲבָל לִכְשֶׁתֵּיטִיב (תהלים נא, כ כא): בִּרְצוֹנְךָ אֶת צִיּוֹן תִּבְנֶה חוֹמוֹת יְרוּשָׁלָיִם, אָז תַּחְפֹּץ זִבְחֵי צֶדֶק עֹלָה וְכָלִיל. 30.2. דָּבָר אַחֵר, וּלְקַחְתֶּם לָכֶם, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (תהלים טז, יא): תּוֹדִיעֵנִי אֹרַח חַיִּים שׂבַע שְׂמָחוֹת, אָמַר דָּוִד לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא תּוֹדִיעֵנִי בְּאֵיזֶה פִּילוֹן מְפֻלָּשׁ לְחַיֵּי הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא, רַבִּי יוּדָן אָמַר, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְדָוִד אִם חַיִּים אַתָּה צָרִיךְ, יִסּוּרִין אַתָּה צָרִיךְ, כְּדִכְתִיב (משלי ו, כג): וְדֶרֶךְ חַיִּים תּוֹכְחוֹת מוּסָר. שׂבַע שְׂמָחוֹת, שִׂבְּעָנוּ בַּחֲמִשָּׁה שְׂמָחוֹת, מִקְרָא, מִשְׁנָה, תַּלְמוּד, תּוֹסֶפְתָּא וְאַגָּדוֹת. דָּבָר אַחֵר, שׂבַע שְׂמָחוֹת אֶת פָּנֶיךָ, אֵלּוּ שֶׁבַע כִּתּוֹת שֶׁל צַדִּיקִים שֶׁעֲתִידִים לְהַקְבִּיל פְּנֵי שְׁכִינָה וּפְנֵיהֶם דּוֹמוֹת לַחַמָּה וּלְבָנָה, לָרָקִיעַ, לַכּוֹכָבִים, לַבְּרָקִים וּלְשׁוֹשַׁנִּים וְלַמְּנוֹרָה הַטְּהוֹרָה שֶׁהָיְתָה בְּבֵית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ. לַחַמָּה מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שיר השירים ו, י): בָּרָה כַּחַמָּה. לַלְּבָנָה מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שיר השירים ו, י): יָפָה כַלְּבָנָה. לָרָקִיעַ מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דניאל יב, ג): וְהַמַּשְׂכִּלִים יַזְהִרוּ כְּזֹהַר הָרָקִיעַ. לַכּוֹכָבִים מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דניאל יב, ג): וּמַצְדִּיקֵי הָרַבִּים כַּכּוֹכָבִים לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד. לַבְּרָקִים מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (נחום ב, ה): מַרְאֵיהֶן כַּלַּפִּידִים כַּבְּרָקִים יְרוֹצֵצוּ. לְשׁוֹשַׁנִּים מִנַּיַן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים מה, א): לַמְנַצֵּחַ עַל שׁשַׁנִּים. לַמְּנוֹרָה הַטְּהוֹרָה מִנַּיִן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (זכריה ד, ב): וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי מָה אַתָּה רֹאֶה וָאֹמַר רָאִיתִי וְהִנֵּה מְנוֹרַת זָהָב כֻּלָּהּ. (תהלים טז, יא): נְעִמוֹת בִּימִינְךָ נֶצַח, וְכִי מִי מוֹדִיעֵנוּ אֵיזוֹ כַּת הַחֲבִיבָה וְהַנְּעִימָה שֶׁבָּהֶן, תְּרֵין אָמוֹרָאִין, חַד אָמַר זוֹ שֶׁבָּאָה מִכֹּחָהּ שֶׁל תּוֹרָה וּמִכֹּחָן שֶׁל מִצְווֹת, וְאָחֳרָנָא אָמַר אֵלּוּ סוֹפְרִין וּמַשְׁנִין שֶׁמְּלַמְּדִין תִּינוֹקוֹת בַּאֲמִתָּן, שֶׁהֵן עֲתִידִין לַעֲמֹד בִּימִינוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב: נְעִמוֹת בִּימִינְךָ נֶצַח. דָּבָר אַחֵר, שׂבַע שְׂמָחוֹת, אַל תְּהִי קוֹרֵא כֵּן אֶלָּא שֶׁבַע שְׂמָחוֹת, אֵלּוּ שֶׁבַע מִצְווֹת שֶׁבֶּחָג, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן, אַרְבָּעָה מִינִין שֶׁבַּלּוּלָב, וְסֻכָּה, חֲגִיגָה וְשִׂמְחָה. אִם שִׂמְחָה לָמָּה חֲגִיגָה וְאִם חֲגִיגָה לָמָּה שִׂמְחָה, אָמַר רַבִּי אָבִין מָשָׁל לִשְׁנַיִם שֶׁנִּכְנְסוּ אֵצֶל הַדַּיָּן וְלֵית אֲנַן יָדְעִין מַאן הוּא נוֹצֵחַ, אֶלָּא מַאן דְּנָסַב בָּאיָין בִּידֵיהּ, אֲנַן יָדְעִין דְּהוּא נָצוֹחַיָיא, כָּךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם בָּאִין וּמְקַטְרְגִים לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה וְלֵית אֲנַן יָדְעִין מַאן נָצַח, אֶלָּא בַּמֶּה שֶׁיִּשְׂרָאֵל יוֹצְאִין מִלִּפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְלוּלָבֵיהֶן וְאֶתְרוֹגֵיהֶן בְּיָדָן, אָנוּ יוֹדְעִין דְיִשְׂרָאֵל אִינוּן נָצוֹחַיָּא, לְפִיכָךְ משֶׁה מַזְהִיר לְיִשְׂרָאֵל וְאוֹמֵר לָהֶם: וּלְקַחְתֶּם לָכֶם בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן. 31.4. דָּבָר אַחֵר, צַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, בַּר קַפָּרָא פָּתַח (תהלים יח, כט): כִּי אַתָּה תָּאִיר נֵרִי, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לָאָדָם, נֵרְךָ בְּיָדִי וְנֵרִי בְיָדֶךָ, נֵרְךָ בְּיָדִי, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (משלי כ, כז): נֵר ה' נִשְׁמַת אָדָם, נֵרִי בְיָדֶךָ (ויקרא כד, ב): לְהַעֲלֹת נֵר תָּמִיד, אֶלָּא אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אִם הֵאַרְתָּ נֵרִי הֲרֵינִי מֵאִיר נֵרְךָ, הֱוֵי: צַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. דָּבָר אַחֵר, צַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (שיר השירים ז, ו): רֹאשֵׁךְ עָלַיִךְ כַּכַּרְמֶל וְדַלַּת רֹאשֵׁךְ כָּאַרְגָּמָן, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, הָרָשִׁים שֶׁבָּכֶם חֲבִיבִין עָלַי כְּאֵלִיָּהוּ שֶׁעָלָה לַכַּרְמֶל, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (מלכים א יח, מב): וְאֵלִיָּהוּ עָלָה אֶל רֹאשׁ הַכַּרְמֶל וַיִּגְהַר אַרְצָה וַיָּשֶׂם פָּנָיו בֵּין בִּרְכָּו, וְלָמָּה שָׂם פָּנָיו בֵּין בִּרְכָּיו, אָמַר לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם אִם אֵין לָנוּ זְכוּת הַבֵּט לִבְרִית מִילָה. (שיר השירים ז, ו): וְדַלַּת רֹאשֵׁךְ כָּאַרְגָּמָן, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא הַדַּלִּים שֶׁבָּכֶם חֲבִיבִין עָלַי כְּדָוִד, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (זכריה יב, ח): וְהָיָה הַנִּכְשָׁל בָּהֶם בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא כְּדָוִיד, וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים כְּדָנִיֵּאל, דִּכְתִיב בֵּיהּ (דניאל ה, כט): וְהַלְבִּשׁוּ לְדָנִיֵּאל אַרְגְּוָנָא. (שיר השירים ז, ו): מֶלֶךְ אָסוּר בָּרְהָטִים, שֶׁאָסַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עַצְמוֹ בִּשְׁבוּעָה שֶׁהוּא מַשְׁרֶה שְׁכִינָתוֹ בְּתוֹךְ רָהִיטִין שֶׁל יַעֲקֹב אָבִינוּ, בִּזְכוּת מִי, רַבִּי אַבָּא בַּר כַּהֲנָא אָמַר בִּזְכוּתוֹ שֶׁל אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ, דִּכְתִיב (בראשית יח, ז): וְאֶל הַבָּקָר רָץ אַבְרָהָם. רַבִּי לֵוִי אָמַר בִּזְכוּתוֹ שֶׁל יַעֲקֹב, דִּכְתִיב בֵּיהּ (בראשית ל, לח): וַיַּצֵּג אֶת הַמַּקְלוֹת אֲשֶׁר פִּצֵּל בָּרְהָטִים. אָמַר רַבִּי בֶּרֶכְיָה מֶלֶךְ אָסוּר בָּרְהָטִים, זֶה משֶׁה, דִּכְתִיב בֵּיהּ (דברים לג, ה): וַיְהִי בִישֻׁרוּן מֶלֶךְ, אָסוּר בָּרְהָטִים, שֶׁגָּזַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עָלָיו שֶׁלֹּא יִכָּנֵס לְאֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל, בִּשְׁבִיל מִי, בִּשְׁבִיל רְהָטִים שֶׁל מֵי מְרִיבָה, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (במדבר כ, יג): הֵמָּה מֵי מְרִיבָה אֲשֶׁר רָבוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה מְשָׁלוֹ מָשָׁל לְמָה הַדָּבָר דּוֹמֶה לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁגָּזַר וְאָמַר כָּל מִי שֶׁיִּלְקֹט וְיֹאכַל מִפֵּרוֹת שְׁבִיעִית יְהוּ מַחֲזִירִין אוֹתוֹ בַּקַּמְפּוֹן, הָלְכָה אִשָּׁה אַחַת בַּת טוֹבִים וְלִקְטָה וְאָכְלָה מִפֵּרוֹת שְׁבִיעִית, הִתְחִילוּ מַחֲזִירִין אוֹתָהּ בַּקַּמְפּוֹן וְהָיְתָה צוֹוַחַת וְאוֹמֶרֶת בְּבַקָּשָׁה מִמְּךָ אֲדוֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ תְּלֵה אֶת הַפַּגִּין הַלָּלוּ בְּצַוָּארִי כְּדֵי שֶׁלֹּא יְהוּ הַבְּרִיּוֹת אוֹמְרוֹת דּוֹמֶה לָנוּ שֶׁנִּמְצָא בָהּ דָּבָר שֶׁל עֶרְוָה אוֹ דָּבָר שֶׁל כְּשָׁפִים, אֶלָּא מִתּוֹךְ שֶׁרוֹאִים אֶת הַפַּגִּין בְּצַוָּארִי הֵן יוֹדְעִין שֶׁבִּשְׁבִילָן אֲנִי מְחַזֶּרֶת. כָּךְ אָמַר משֶׁה לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא רִבּוֹן הָעוֹלָם כְּתֹב בְּתוֹרָתְךָ מִפְּנֵי מָה אֵינִי נִכְנַס לָאָרֶץ, שֶׁלֹּא יְהוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל אוֹמְרִים דּוֹמֶה לָנוּ שֶׁזִּיֵּף משֶׁה אֶת הַתּוֹרָה, אוֹ אָמַר דָּבָר שֶׁלֹּא נִצְטַוָּה. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא חַיֶּיךָ שֶׁאֲנִי כּוֹתֵב שֶׁלֹּא הָיְתָה אֶלָּא עַל הַמָּיִם, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (במדבר כז, יד): כַּאֲשֶׁר מְרִיתֶם פִּי בְּמִדְבַּר צִן. רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן מְשָׁלוֹ מָשָׁל לְמָה הַדָּבָר דּוֹמֶה לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁמְהַלֵּךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ וּבְנוֹ עִמּוֹ עַל קָרוֹכִין, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעוּ לְמָקוֹם צַר נֶהְפְּכָה קָרוֹכִין עַל בְּנוֹ, נִסְמֵית עֵינוֹ נִקְטְעָה יָדוֹ נִשְׁבְּרָה רַגְלוֹ, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהָיָה הַמֶּלֶךְ מַגִּיעַ לְאוֹתוֹ מָקוֹם, הָיָה מַזְכִּיר וְאוֹמֵר אוֹי לִי כָּאן נִזּוֹק בְּרִי, כָּאן נִסְמֵית עֵינוֹ, כָּאן נִקְטְעָה יָדוֹ, כָּאן נִשְׁבְּרָה רַגְלוֹ. כָּךְ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מַזְכִּיר בְּתוֹרָתוֹ שָׁלשׁ פְּעָמִים מֵי מְרִיבָה, כְּלוֹמַר כָּאן הָרַגְתִּי אֶת משֶׁה, כָּאן הָרַגְתִּי אֶת אַהֲרֹן, כָּאן הָרַגְתִּי אֶת מִרְיָם, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (תהלים קמא, ו): נִשְׁמְטוּ בִידֵי סֶלַע שֹׁפְטֵיהֶם וְשָׁמְעוּ אֲמָרַי כִּי נָעֵמוּ. רַב נַחְמָן אָמַר מֶלֶךְ זֶה משֶׁה, דִּכְתִיב: וַיְהִי בִישֻׁרוּן מֶלֶךְ, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְמשֶׁה אֲנִי מִנִּיתִיךָ מֶלֶךְ עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל, דַּרְכּוֹ שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ לִהְיוֹת גּוֹזֵר וַאֲחֵרִים מְקַיְּמִין, כָּךְ תְּהֵא גוֹזֵר וְיִשְׂרָאֵל מְקַיְּמִין, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב: צַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. | |
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11. Anon., Sifre Deuteronomy, 357, 306 (2nd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
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12. Anon., Sifre Numbers, 112 (2nd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
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13. Palestinian Talmud, Taanit, 65d (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
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14. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot, 62b, 3b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 3b. בחדתי,ותיפוק ליה משום מזיקין בתרי,אי בתרי חשד נמי ליכא בתרי ופריצי.,מפני המפולת ותיפוק ליה משום חשד ומזיקין,בתרי וכשרי.,מפני המזיקין ותיפוק ליה מפני חשד ומפולת,בחורבה חדתי ובתרי וכשרי, אי בתרי מזיקין נמי ליכא,במקומן חיישינן ואי בעית אימא לעולם בחד ובחורבה חדתי דקאי בדברא דהתם משום חשד ליכא דהא אשה בדברא לא שכיחא ומשום מזיקין איכא:,תנו רבנן ארבע משמרות הוי הלילה דברי רבי רבי נתן אומר שלש,מאי טעמא דרבי נתן דכתיב (שופטים ז)ויבא גדעון ומאה איש אשר אתו בקצה המחנה ראש האשמורת התיכונה תנא אין תיכונה אלא שיש לפניה ולאחריה,ורבי מאי תיכונה אחת מן התיכונה שבתיכונות,ורבי נתן מי כתיב תיכונה שבתיכונות תיכונה כתיב,מאי טעמיה דרבי אמר רב זריקא אמר רבי אמי אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי כתוב אחד אומר (תהלים קיט)חצות לילה אקום להודות לך על משפטי צדקך וכתוב אחד אומר (שם)קדמו עיני אשמורות הא כיצד ארבע משמרות הוי הלילה,ורבי נתן סבר לה כרבי יהושע דתנן רבי יהושע אומר עד שלש שעות שכן דרך מלכים לעמוד בשלש שעות שית דליליא ותרתי דיממא הוו להו שתי משמרות,רב אשי אמר משמרה ופלגא נמי משמרות קרו להו:,ואמר רבי זריקא אמר רבי אמי אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי אין אומרין בפני המת אלא דבריו של מת,אמר רבי אבא בר כהנא לא אמרן אלא בדברי תורה אבל מילי דעלמא לית לן בה,ואיכא דאמרי אמר רבי אבא בר כהנא לא אמרן אלא [אפילו] בדברי תורה וכל שכן מילי דעלמא:,ודוד בפלגא דליליא הוה קאי מאורתא הוה קאי דכתיב (תהלים קיט)קדמתי בנשף ואשועה וממאי דהאי נשף אורתא הוא דכתיב (משלי ז)בנשף בערב יום באישון לילה ואפילה,אמר רב אושעיא אמר רבי אחא הכי קאמר (דוד) מעולם לא עבר עלי חצות לילה בשינה.,רבי זירא אמר עד חצות לילה היה מתנמנם כסוס מכאן ואילך היה מתגבר כארי רב אשי אמר עד חצות לילה היה עוסק בדברי תורה מכאן ואילך בשירות ותשבחות., ונשף אורתא הוא הא נשף צפרא הוא דכתיב (שמואל א ל)ויכם דוד מהנשף ועד הערב למחרתם מאי לאו מצפרא ועד ליליא,לא מאורתא ועד אורתא,אי הכי לכתוב מהנשף ועד הנשף או מהערב ועד הערב,אלא אמר רבא תרי נשפי הוו נשף ליליא ואתי יממא נשף יממא ואתי ליליא.,ודוד מי הוה ידע פלגא דליליא אימת השתא משה רבינו לא הוה ידע דכתיב (שמות יא) כחצות הלילה אני יוצא בתוך מצרים,מאי כחצות אילימא דאמר ליה קודשא בריך הוא כחצות מי איכא ספיקא קמי שמיא אלא דאמר ליה (למחר) בחצות (כי השתא) ואתא איהו ואמר כחצות אלמא מספקא ליה ודוד הוה ידע,דוד סימנא הוה ליה דאמר רב אחא בר ביזנא אמר רבי שמעון חסידא כנור היה תלוי למעלה ממטתו של דוד וכיון שהגיע חצות לילה בא רוח צפונית ונושבת בו ומנגן מאליו מיד היה עומד ועוסק בתורה עד שעלה עמוד השחר כיון שעלה עמוד השחר נכנסו חכמי ישראל אצלו אמרו לו אדונינו המלך עמך ישראל צריכין פרנסה אמר להם לכו והתפרנסו זה מזה אמרו לו אין הקומץ משביע את הארי ואין הבור מתמלא מחוליתו אמר להם לכו ופשטו ידיכם בגדוד,מיד יועצים באחיתופל ונמלכין בסנהדרין ושואלין באורים ותומים,אמר רב יוסף מאי קרא (דכתיב) (דברי הימים א כז)ואחרי אחיתופל בניהו בן יהוידע ואביתר ושר צבא למלך יואב,אחיתופל זה יועץ וכן הוא אומר (שמואל ב טז) ועצת אחיתופל אשר יעץ בימים ההם כאשר ישאל (איש) בדבר האלהים | 3b. The Gemara answers: This ihalakhaapplies even binthe case of a bnew,sturdy ruin, where there is no danger of collapse. Therefore, the reason because of suspicion is cited in order to warn one not to enter a new ruin as well.,The Gemara continues to object: bAnd let this ihalakha bbe derived because of demons?The Gemara answers: Demons are only a threat to individuals, so because of demons would not apply to a case bwhere twopeople enter a ruin together.,The Gemara objects: But bif there are twopeople entering a ruin together, then bthere is no suspicion either.There is no prohibition against two men to be alone with a woman as, in that case, there is no suspicion of untoward behavior. Consequently, if two men enter a ruin together, there is no room for suspicion. The Gemara answers: If btwo individualsknown to be bimmoralenter together, there is suspicion even though there are two of them.,The Gemara considers why bbecause of collapseis necessary. bLetthe prohibition bbe derived from suspicion and demons. /b,The Gemara responds: There are times when this reason is necessary, e.g., when btwo upstanding individualsenter a ruin together. Although there is neither concern of suspicion nor of demons, there remains concern lest the ruin collapse.,The Gemara considers the third reason, bbecause of demons.Why is it necessary to include: Because of demons? bLetthe prohibition bbe derived from suspicion and collapse. /b,The Gemara responds: There are cases where this is the only concern, for example where it is a bnewruin into which btwo upstandingindividuals enter, so there is neither concern lest it collapse nor of suspicion.,The Gemara points out, however, that bif there are two people, there is also noconcern of bdemons.As such, the question remains: In what case can demons be the sole cause not to enter a ruin?,The Gemara responds: Generally speaking, two individuals need not be concerned about demons; but, if they are bin their place,i.e., a place known to be haunted by demons (see Isaiah 13:21), bwe are concernedabout demons even with two people. bAnd if you wish, sayinstead: bActually,this refers btothe case of ban individualentering ba new ruin located in a field. There, there is no suspicion, asfinding ba woman in the field is uncommon;and since it is a new ruin, there is no danger of collapse. bHowever, there isstill concern of bdemons. /b, bThe Sages taughtin a iTosefta /i: bThe night is comprised of four watches;this is bthe statement of RabbiYehuda HaNasi. bRabbi Natan says:The night is comprised of bthreewatches.,The Gemara explains: bWhat is Rabbi Natan’s reasoning? As it is written: “And Gideon, and the one hundred men who were with him, came to the edge of camp at the beginning of the middle watch”(Judges 7:19). bIt was taughtin the iTosefta /i: bMiddle means nothing other thanthat bthere is one before it and one after it.From the fact that the verse refers to a middle watch, the fact that the night is comprised of three watches may be inferred., bAndwhat does bRabbiYehuda HaNasi say about this proof? He argues that it is inconclusive, as one could say: To bwhatdoes bmiddlerefer? It refers to bone of thetwo bmiddlewatches., bAndhow would bRabbi Natanrespond? He would say: Despite Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi’s objection, bis: One of the middlewatches, bwrittenin the verse? bThe middlewatch bis written.This indicates that the night is comprised of only three watches., bWhat is RabbiYehuda HaNasi’s breasoning? Rabbi Zerika saidthat bRabbi Ami saidthat bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: RabbiYehuda HaNasi’s opinion is based on a comparison of two verses. bOne verse says: “At midnight I rise to give thanks for Your righteous laws”(Psalms 119:62), band the other verse says: “My eyes forestall the watches,that I will speak of Your word” (Psalms 119:148). Taken together, these verses indicate that their author, King David, rose at midnight, two watches before dawn, in order to study Torah. bHow is itpossible to reconcile these two verses? Only if bthere are four watches in the nightdoes one who rises two watches before dawn rise at midnight., bAndhow does bRabbi Natanreconcile these two verses? He bholds in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yehoshua, for we learnedin a mishna that bRabbi Yehoshua says:One is permitted to recite the morning iShemaduring the time when people rise, buntil the third hourof the day, bas it is the custom of kings to rise during the third hour.Since it is customary for kings to rise during the third hour of the day, if David rose at midnight, he would be awake for bsix hours of the night and two hours of the day,which amounts to btwo watches.Therefore King David could say that he “forestalls the watches,” as he rose two watches before the rest of the kings in the world., bRav Ashi saidthat the verses can be reconciled in accordance with Rabbi Natan’s opinion in another way: bOne and one-half watches are still called watchesin plural. Therefore King David could rise at midnight yet maintain that he “forestalls the watches.”,Following this discussion, another ihalakhathat bRabbi Zerika saidthat bRabbi Ami saidthat bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi saidis cited: bBefore the dead, one may speak only of matters relating to the dead,as speaking of other matters appears to be contemptuous of the deceased, underscoring that he is unable to talk while those around him can. Therefore, one must remain fully engaged in matters relating to him.,Two traditions exist with regard to the details of this ihalakhain the name of Rabbi Abba bar Kahana. According to one version, bRabbi Abba bar Kahana said:This ihalakha bwas only said with regard to matters of Torah.Speaking of bother matters, however, is notprohibited, since no contempt is expressed for the deceased by the fact that he is unable to speak of such topics., bOthers sayanother version of this ihalakhain the name of Rabbi Abba bar Kahana: This ihalakha bwas said even with regard to matters of Torah, and all the more so with regard to other matters.If one must refrain from speaking of matters of Torah, regarding which one is commanded to speak, and limit himself to matters concerning the deceased, all the more so should he refrain from speaking of other matters, regarding which one is not commanded to speak.,Incidental to the Gemara’s mention of King David, other sources are cited that describe his actions. Regarding that which was cited above, that he would rise in the middle of the night in order to serve his Creator, the Gemara asks: bDid David rise at midnight? He rose in the evening. As it is written: “I rose with the ineshefand cried,I hoped for Your word” (Psalms 119:147). bAnd howdo we know bthat this ineshefis the evening? As it is written: “In the ineshef /i, in the evening of the day, in the blackness of night and the darkness”(Proverbs 7:9). Apparently, King David did indeed rise when it was still evening.,The Gemara suggests several ways to resolve this contradiction. bRabbi Oshaya saidthat bRabbi Aḥa said: David said as follows: Midnight never passed me by in my sleep.Sometimes I fulfilled the verse, “I rose with the ineshefand cried,” but I always, at least, fulfilled the verse, “At midnight I rise to give thanks for Your righteous laws.”, bRabbi Zeira said: Until midnight,David bwould doze like a horse,as a horse dozes, but never sleeps deeply. bFrommidnight bon, he would gain the strength of a lion. Rav Ashi said: Until midnight, he would study Torah,as it is written: “I rose with the ineshefand cried, I hoped for Your word,” band frommidnight bon,he would engage in bsongs and praise,as it is written: “At midnight I rise to give thanks.”,To this point, the discussion has been based on the assumption that ineshefmeans evening. The Gemara asks: bDoes ineshef /ireally bmean evening? Doesn’t ineshefmean morning? As it is written: “And David slew them from the ineshefuntil the evening of the next day”(I Samuel 30:17). bDoesn’tthis verse mean bfrom the morning until the night,in which case ineshefmust mean morning?,The Gemara responds: bNo,this verse means that David slew them bfromone bevening untilthe next bevening. /b,The Gemara rejects this response: bIf so, letthe verse bbe written: From the ineshefuntil the ineshef /i, or from the evening until the evening.Why would the verse employ two different terms for a single concept?, bRather, Rava said: There are twotimes referred to as ineshef /i,and the word can refer to either evening or morning. iNeshefmust be understood in accordance with its Aramaic root: bThe night movespast b[ineshaf] band the day arrives, and the day movespast [ ineshaf] band the night arrives. /b,When King David said: At midnight I rise, the assumption is that he rose precisely at midnight. The Gemara asks: bDid David knowexactly bwhen it was midnight? Even Moses our teacher did not knowexactly when it was midnight. How do we know this about Moses? bAs it is writtenthat he said to Pharaoh: “Thus said the Lord: bAbout midnight, I will go out into the midst of Egypt”(Exodus 11:4). The word about indicates that it was only an approximation.,The Gemara clarifies: bWhatis the meaning of the expression: bAbout midnight?Did Moses say it or did God say it? bIf we saythat bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, Himself, said: About midnight, toMoses, bis there doubt beforeGod in bheaven? Rather,this must be understood as follows: bGod toldMoses: bAt midnight, butfrom the fact that bwhenMoses bcameto Pharaoh bhe said: About midnight; apparently /b, Moses bwas uncertainabout the exact moment of midnight. Moses, the greatest of all the prophets, was uncertain, and bDavid knew? /b,The Gemara offers several answers to this question: br bDavid had a signindicating when bit was midnight.As bRav Aḥa bar Bizna saidthat bRabbi Shimon Ḥasida said: A lyre hung over David’s bed, and once midnight arrived, the northernmidnight bwind would come andcause bthe lyre to play on its own.David bwould immediately risefrom his bed band study Torah until the first rays of dawn. br bOnce dawnarrived, bthe Sages of Israel enteredto advise bhimwith regard to the various concerns of the nation and the economy. bThey said to him: Our master, the king, your nation requires sustece. br bHe said: Go and sustain one another,provide each other with whatever is lacking. brThe Sages of Israel bresponded to himwith a parable: bA single handfulof food bdoes not satisfy a lion, and a pitwill bnotbe bfilledmerely bfromthe rain that falls directly into bits mouth,but other water must be piped in ( ige’onim /i). So too, the nation cannot sustain itself using its own resources. brKing David btold them: Go and take up arms with the troopsin battle in order to expand our borders and provide our people with the opportunity to earn a livelihood.,The Sages bimmediately seek advice from Ahitophelto determine whether or not it was appropriate to go to war at that time and how they should conduct themselves, band they consult the Sanhedrinin order to receive the requisite license to wage a war under those circumstances ( iTosefot HaRosh /i). bAnd they ask the iUrim VeTummim /iwhether or not they should go to war, and whether or not they would be successful., bRav Yosef said:Upon bwhat verseis this iaggadabased? bAs it is written: “And after Ahitophel was Yehoyada son of Benayahu and Evyatar, and the general of the king’s army, Yoav”(I Chronicles 27:34).,The individuals named in this verse correspond with the roles in the iaggadaas follows: bAhitophel is the adviserwhose advice they sought first with regard to going to war, band so it says: “Now the counsel of Ahitophel, which he counseled in those days, was as a man who inquires of the word of God;so was the counsel of Ahitophel both with David and with Absalom” (II Samuel 16:23). |
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15. Babylonian Talmud, Eruvin, 53a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 53a. וגשרים ונפשות שיש בהן בית דירה מוציאין את המדה כנגדן ועושין אותה כמין טבלא מרובעת כדי שיהא נשכר את הזויות:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big רב ושמואל חד תני מעברין וחד תני מאברין,מאן דתני מאברין אבר אבר ומאן דתני מעברין כאשה עוברה (בראשית כג, ט),מערת המכפלה רב ושמואל חד אמר שני בתים זה לפנים מזה וחד אמר בית ועלייה על גביו,בשלמא למאן דאמר זה על גב זה היינו מכפלה אלא למאן דאמר שני בתים זה לפנים מזה מאי מכפלה,שכפולה בזוגות (בראשית לה, כז) ממרא קרית ארבע א"ר יצחק קרית הארבע זוגות אדם וחוה אברהם ושרה יצחק ורבקה יעקב ולאה (בראשית יד, א),ויהי בימי אמרפל רב ושמואל חד אמר נמרוד שמו ולמה נקרא שמו אמרפל שאמר והפיל לאברהם אבינו בתוך כבשן האש וחד אמר אמרפל שמו ולמה נקרא שמו נמרוד שהמריד את כל העולם כולו עליו במלכותו (שמות א, ח),ויקם מלך חדש על מצרים רב ושמואל חד אמר חדש ממש וחד אמר שנתחדשו גזירותיו,מ"ד חדש ממש דכתיב חדש ומאן דאמר שנתחדשו גזירותיו מדלא כתיב וימת וימלוך,ולמאן דאמר שנתחדשו גזירותיו הא כתיב (שמות א, ח) אשר לא ידע את יוסף מאי אשר לא ידע את יוסף דהוה דמי כמאן דלא ידע ליה ליוסף כלל:,(סימן שמונה עשרה ושנים עשר למדנו בדוד ויבן):,א"ר יוחנן י"ח ימים גידלתי אצל רבי אושעיא בריבי ולא למדתי ממנו אלא דבר אחד במשנתינו כיצד מאברין את הערים באלף,איני והאמר רבי יוחנן י"ב תלמידים היו לו לרבי אושעיא בריבי וי"ח ימים גידלתי ביניהן ולמדתי לב כל אחד ואחד וחכמת כל אחד ואחד,לב כל אחד ואחד וחכמת כל אחד ואחד גמר גמרא לא גמר איבעית אימא מנייהו דידהו גמר מיניה דידיה לא גמר ואב"א דבר אחד במשנתינו קאמר,וא"ר יוחנן כשהיינו לומדין תורה אצל ר' אושעיא היינו יושבין ארבעה ארבעה באמה אמר רבי כשהיינו לומדין תורה אצל רבי אלעזר בן שמוע היינו יושבין ששה ששה באמה,א"ר יוחנן רבי אושעיא בריבי בדורו כר' מאיר בדורו מה רבי מאיר בדורו לא יכלו חבריו לעמוד על סוף דעתו אף רבי אושעיא לא יכלו חבריו לעמוד על סוף דעתו,אמר ר' יוחנן לבן של ראשונים כפתחו של אולם ושל אחרונים כפתחו של היכל ואנו כמלא נקב מחט סידקית,ראשונים ר"ע אחרונים ר"א בן שמוע איכא דאמרי ראשונים ר' אלעזר בן שמוע אחרונים ר' אושעיא בריבי ואנו כמלא נקב מחט סידקית,אמר אביי ואנן כי סיכתא בגודא לגמרא אמר רבא ואנן כי אצבעתא בקירא לסברא אמר רב אשי אנן כי אצבעתא בבירא לשכחה,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב בני יהודה שהקפידו על לשונם נתקיימה תורתם בידם בני גליל שלא הקפידו על לשונם לא נתקיימה תורתם בידם,מידי בקפידא תליא מילתא אלא בני יהודה דדייקי לישנא ומתנחי להו סימנא נתקיימה תורתן בידן בני גליל דלא דייקי לישנא ולא מתנחי להו סימנא לא נתקיימה תורתן בידם,בני יהודה גמרו מחד רבה נתקיימה תורתן בידם בני גליל דלא גמרי מחד רבה לא נתקיימה תורתן בידם,רבינא אמר בני יהודה דגלו מסכתא נתקיימה תורתן בידם בני גליל דלא גלו מסכתא לא נתקיימה תורתן בידם,דוד גלי מסכתא שאול לא גלי מסכתא דוד דגלי מסכתא כתיב ביה (תהלים קיט, עד) יראיך יראוני וישמחו שאול דלא גלי מסכתא כתיב ביה ((שמואל א יד, מז) אל כל) אשר יפנה | 53a. band bridges and monumentsover graves bin which there is a residence, one extends the measureof that side of the city as though there were other structures bopposite themin the adjacent corner of the city. bAndprior to measuring the Shabbat limit, bone rendersthe city blike a square tablet so that it gains the corners,although there are actually no houses in those corners., strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara cites a dispute with regard to the mishna’s terminology. bRav and Shmueldisagreed: bOne taughtthat the term in the mishna is ime’abberin /i,with the letter iayin /i, band one taughtthat the term in the mishna is ime’abberin /i,with the letter ialef /i.,The Gemara explains: bThe one who taught ime’abberin /iwith an ialefexplained the term in the sense of blimb[iever/b] by blimb.Determination of the city’s borders involves the addition of limbs to the core section of the city. bAnd the one who taught ime’abberin /iwith an iayinexplained the term in the sense of ba pregt woman[iubbera/b] whose belly protrudes. In similar fashion, all the city’s protrusions are incorporated in its Shabbat limit.,Apropos this dispute, the Gemara cites similar disputes between Rav and Shmuel. With regard to bthe Machpelah Cave,in which the Patriarchs and Matriarchs are buried, bRav and Shmueldisagreed. bOne said:The cave consists of btwo rooms, onefarther binthan bthe other. And one said:It consists of ba room anda second bstory above it. /b,The Gemara asks: bGranted,this is understandable baccording to the one who saidthe cave consists of boneroom babove the other,as bthat isthe meaning of bMachpelah, double. However, according to the one who saidit consists of btwo rooms, onefarther binthan bthe other,in bwhatsense is it bMachpelah?Even ordinary houses contain two rooms.,Rather, it is called Machpelah in the sense bthat it is doubled withthe Patriarchs and Matriarchs, who are buried there bin pairs.This is similar to the homiletic interpretation of the alternative name for Hebron mentioned in the Torah: b“Mamreof bKiryat Ha’Arba,which is Hebron” (Genesis 35:27). bRabbi Yitzḥak said:The city is called Kiryat Ha’Arba, the city of four, because it is bthe city of the four couplesburied there: bAdam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca,and bJacob and Leah. /b,They disagreed about this verse as well: b“And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel”(Genesis 14:1). bRav and Shmuelboth identified Amraphel with Nimrod. However, bone said: Nimrod was his name. And why was his name called Amraphel?It is a contraction of two Hebrew words: bAs he said [ iamar /i]the command band cast [ ihippil /i] our father Abraham into the fiery furnace,when Abraham rebelled against and challenged his proclaimed divinity. bAnd one said: Amraphel was his name. And why was his name called Nimrod? Because he caused the entire world to rebel [ ihimrid /i]against bGod during his reign. /b,They also disagreed about this verse: b“There arose a new king over Egypt,who knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8). bRav and Shmueldisagreed. bOne said:He was bactuallya bnewking, band one said:He was in fact the old king, but bhis decrees were new. /b,The Gemara explains. bThe one who saidhe was bactuallya bnewking based his opinion on the fact bthat it is writtenin the verse that he was bnew. And the one who said that his decrees were newderived his opinion bfromthe fact bthat it is not written: Andthe king bdied, andhis successor breigned,as it is written, for example, with regard to the kings of Edom (Genesis 36).,The Gemara asks: bAnd according to the one who said that his decrees were new, isn’t it written: “Who knew not Joseph”?If it were the same king, how could he not know Joseph? The Gemara explains: bWhat isthe meaning of the phrase: b“Who knew not Joseph”?It means bthat heconducted himself blike one who did not know Joseph at all. /b,The Gemara cites a bmnemonicof key words from a series of traditions cited below: bEighteen and twelve we studied, with regard to David, and he will understand. /b, bRabbi Yoḥa said: I spent eighteen days with Rabbi Oshaya the Distinguished [ iBeribbi /i], and I learned from him only one matter in our Mishna.In the phrase: bHow does one extend cities,the word ime’abberinis spelled bwith an ialef /i. /b,The Gemara asks: bIs this so? Didn’t Rabbi Yoḥa say: Rabbi Oshaya the Distinguished had twelve students, and I spent eighteen days among them, and I learned the heart of each and every one,i.e., the nature and character of each student, band theextent of the bwisdom of each and every one?How could Rabbi Yoḥa say that he learned only one matter?,The Gemara answers: It is possible that bhe learned the heart of each and every one and the wisdom of each and every one,but bhe did not learnsubstantive btradition.And bif you wish, sayinstead: bFromthe students bthemselves he learnedmany things; bfromRabbi Oshaya bhimself he did not learnanything beyond that one matter. bAnd if you wish, sayinstead: Rabbi Yoḥa meant to bsaythat he learned only one matter bin our Mishnafrom Rabbi Oshaya, but he learned other matters from him based on ibaraitotand other sources., bAnd Rabbi Yoḥa saidabout that period: bWhen we were studying Torah with Rabbi Oshaya,it was so crowded with students that bwe would sit four in eachsquare bcubit.Similarly, bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bsaid: When we were studying Torah with Rabbi Elazar ben Shamua, we would sit six in eachsquare bcubit. /b, bRabbi Yoḥa saidabout his teacher: bRabbi Oshaya the Distinguishedwas as great bin his generation as Rabbi Meirwas bin his generation: Just aswith regard to bRabbi Meir, in his generation his colleagues were unable to fully graspthe profundity of bhis thinkingdue to the subtlety of his great mind, bsoit was with bRabbi Oshaya; his colleagues were unable to fully graspthe profundity of bhis thinking. /b,Similarly, bRabbi Yoḥa said: The hearts,i.e., the wisdom, bofthe bearlySages were blike the doorway to the Entrance Hallof the Temple, which was twenty by forty cubits, bandthe hearts bofthe blaterSages bwere like the doorway to the Sanctuary,which was ten by twenty cubits. bAnd we,i.e., our hearts, bare likethe beye of a fine needle. /b,He explains: The term bearlySages is referring to bRabbi Akiva,and the term blaterSages is referring to his student, bRabbi Elazar ben Shamua. Some saythat the term bearlySages refers to bRabbi Elazar ben Shamuaand that the term the blaterSages refers to bRabbi Oshaya the Distinguished. And we are likethe beye of a fine needle. /b,On the topic of the steady decline of the generations, bAbaye said: And we,as far as our capabilities are concerned, bare like a peg in the wall with regard toTorah bstudy.Just as a peg enters a wall with difficulty, our studies penetrate our minds only with difficulty. bRava said: And we are like a finger in wax [ ikira /i] with regard to logical reasoning.A finger is not easily pushed into wax, and it extracts nothing from the wax. bRav Ashi said: We are like a finger in a pit with regard to forgetfulness.Just as a finger easily enters a large pit, similarly, we quickly forget our studies.,The Gemara continues the discussion relating to study and comprehension, and cites that which bRav Yehuda said that Rav said:With regard to bthe people of Judea, who were particular in their speechand always made certain that it was both precise and refined, btheir Torahknowledge bendured for them;with regard to bthe people of the Galilee, who were not particular in their speech, their Torahknowledge bdid not endure for them. /b,The Gemara asks: bIsthis bmatter at all dependent onbeing bparticularwith one’s language? bRather,with regard to bthe people of Judea, who were precise in their language andwho bwould formulate mnemonicsfor their studies, btheir Torahknowledge bendured for them;with regard to bthe people of the Galilee, who were not precise in their language andwho bwould not formulate mnemonics, their Torahknowledge bdid not endure for them. /b,Furthermore, with regard to bthe people of Judea,who bstudied from one teacher, their Torahknowledge bendured for them,as their teacher provided them with a consistent approach; however, with regard to bthe people of the Galilee, who did not study from one teacher,but rather from several teachers, btheir Torahknowledge bdid not endure for them,as it was a combination of the approaches and opinions of a variety of Sages., bRavina said:With regard to bthe people of Judea, who wouldpublicly bdisclose the tractateto be studied in the coming term so that everyone could prepare and study it in advance ( ige’onim /i), btheir Torahknowledge bendured for them;with regard to bthe people of the Galilee, who would not disclose the tractateto be studied in the coming term, btheir Torahknowledge bdid not endure for them. /b,The Gemara relates that King bDavid would disclose the tractateto be studied in advance, whereas bSaul would not disclose the tractateto be studied. bWith regard to David, who would disclose the tractate, it is written: “Those who fear You will see me and be glad”(Psalms 119:74), since all were prepared and could enjoy his Torah. bWith regard to Saul, who would not disclose the tractateto be studied, bit is written: “And wherever he turned himself /b |
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16. Babylonian Talmud, Gittin, 57b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 57b. אמר רבי חייא בר אבין אמר רבי יהושע בן קרחה סח לי זקן אחד מאנשי ירושלים בבקעה זו הרג נבוזראדן רב טבחים מאתים ואחת עשרה רבוא ובירושלים הרג תשעים וארבע רבוא על אבן אחת עד שהלך דמן ונגע בדמו של זכריה לקיים מה שנאמר (הושע ד, ב) ודמים בדמים נגעו,אשכחיה לדמיה דזכריה דהוה קא מרתח וסליק אמר מאי האי אמרו ליה דם זבחים דאשתפוך אייתי דמי ולא אידמו,אמר להו אי אמריתו לי מוטב ואי לאו מסריקנא לבשרייכו במסרקי דפרזלי אמרי ליה מאי נימא לך נבייא הוה בן דהוה קא מוכח לן במילי דשמיא קמינן עילויה וקטלינן ליה והא כמה שנין דלא קא נייח דמיה,אמר להו אנא מפייסנא ליה אייתי סנהדרי גדולה וסנהדרי קטנה קטל עילויה ולא נח בחורים ובתולות קטל עילויה ולא נח אייתי תינוקות של בית רבן קטל עילויה ולא נח א"ל זכריה זכריה טובים שבהן איבדתים ניחא לך דאבדינהו לכולהו כדאמר ליה הכי נח,בההיא שעתא הרהר תשובה בדעתיה אמר ומה אם על נפש אחת כך ההוא גברא דקטל כל הני נשמתא על אחת כמה וכמה ערק אזל שדר שטר פרטתא בביתיה ואגייר,תנא נעמן גר תושב היה נבוזראדן גר צדק היה,מבני בניו של המן למדו תורה בבני ברק מבני בניו של סיסרא למדו תינוקות בירושלים מבני בניו של סנחריב למדו תורה ברבים מאן אינון שמעיה ואבטליון,היינו דכתיב (יחזקאל כד, ח) נתתי את דמה על צחיח סלע לבלתי הכסות,(בראשית כז, כב) הקול קול יעקב והידים ידי עשו הקול זה אדריינוס קיסר שהרג באלכסנדריא של מצרים ששים רבוא על ששים רבוא כפלים כיוצאי מצרים קול יעקב זה אספסיינוס קיסר שהרג בכרך ביתר ארבע מאות רבוא ואמרי לה ארבעת אלפים רבוא והידים ידי עשו זו מלכות הרשעה שהחריבה את בתינו ושרפה את היכלנו והגליתנו מארצנו,דבר אחר הקול קול יעקב אין לך תפלה שמועלת שאין בה מזרעו של יעקב והידים ידי עשו אין לך מלחמה שנוצחת שאין בה מזרעו של עשו,והיינו דא"ר אלעזר (איוב ה, כא) בשוט לשון תחבא בחירחורי לשון תחבא אמר רב יהודה אמר רב מאי דכתיב (תהלים קלז, א) על נהרות בבל שם ישבנו גם בכינו בזכרנו את ציון מלמד שהראהו הקב"ה לדוד חורבן בית ראשון וחורבן בית שני חורבן בית ראשון שנאמר על נהרות בבל שם ישבנו גם בכינו בית שני דכתיב (תהלים קלז, ז) זכור ה' לבני אדום את יום ירושלים האומרים ערו ערו עד היסוד בה,אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל ואיתימא רבי אמי ואמרי לה במתניתא תנא מעשה בד' מאות ילדים וילדות שנשבו לקלון הרגישו בעצמן למה הן מתבקשים אמרו אם אנו טובעין בים אנו באין לחיי העולם הבא דרש להן הגדול שבהן (תהלים סח, כג) אמר ה' מבשן אשיב אשיב ממצולות ים מבשן אשיב מבין שיני אריה אשיב ממצולות ים אלו שטובעין בים,כיון ששמעו ילדות כך קפצו כולן ונפלו לתוך הים נשאו ילדים ק"ו בעצמן ואמרו מה הללו שדרכן לכך כך אנו שאין דרכנו לכך על אחת כמה וכמה אף הם קפצו לתוך הים ועליהם הכתוב אומר (תהלים מד, כג) כי עליך הורגנו כל היום נחשבנו כצאן טבחה,ורב יהודה אמר זו אשה ושבעה בניה אתיוהו קמא לקמיה דקיסר אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (שמות כ, ב) אנכי ה' אלהיך אפקוהו וקטלוהו,ואתיוהו לאידך לקמיה דקיסר אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (שמות כ, ב) לא יהיה לך אלהים אחרים על פני אפקוהו וקטלוהו אתיוהו לאידך אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (שמות כב, יט) זובח לאלהים יחרם אפקוהו וקטלוהו,אתיוהו לאידך אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (שמות לד, יד) לא תשתחוה לאל אחר אפקוהו וקטלוהו אתיוהו לאידך אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (דברים ו, ד) שמע ישראל ה' אלהינו ה' אחד אפקוהו וקטלוהו,אתיוהו לאידך אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (דברים ד, לט) וידעת היום והשבות אל לבבך כי ה' הוא האלהים בשמים ממעל ועל הארץ מתחת אין עוד אפקוהו וקטלוהו,אתיוהו לאידך אמרו ליה פלח לעבודת כוכבים אמר להו כתוב בתורה (דברים כו, יז) את ה' האמרת וגו' וה' האמירך היום כבר נשבענו להקדוש ברוך הוא שאין אנו מעבירין אותו באל אחר ואף הוא נשבע לנו שאין מעביר אותנו באומה אחרת,א"ל קיסר אישדי לך גושפנקא וגחין ושקליה כי היכי דלימרו קביל עליה הרמנא דמלכא א"ל חבל עלך קיסר חבל עלך קיסר על כבוד עצמך כך על כבוד הקב"ה על אחת כמה וכמה,אפקוהו למיקטליה אמרה להו אימיה יהבוהו ניהלי ואינשקיה פורתא אמרה לו בניי לכו ואמרו לאברהם אביכם אתה עקדת מזבח אחד ואני עקדתי שבעה מזבחות אף היא עלתה לגג ונפלה ומתה יצתה בת קול ואמרה (תהלים קיג, ט) אם הבנים שמחה,ר' יהושע בן לוי אמר זו מילה שניתנה בשמיני ר' שמעון בן לקיש אמר אלו ת"ח שמראין הלכות שחיטה בעצמן דאמר רבא כל מילי ליחזי איניש בנפשיה בר משחיטה ודבר אחר,רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר אלו תלמידי חכמים שממיתין עצמן על דברי תורה כדר' שמעון בן לקיש דאמר ר"ש בן לקיש אין דברי תורה מתקיימין אלא במי שממית עצמו עליהם שנאמר (במדבר יט, יד) זאת התורה אדם כי ימות באהל וגו' אמר רבה בר בר חנה א"ר יוחנן ארבעים סאה | 57b. § With regard to the Babylonian exile following the destruction of the First Temple, bRabbi Ḥiyya bar Avin saysthat bRabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa says: An old man fromamong bthe inhabitants of Jerusalem related to me: In this valleythat lies before you, bNebuzaradan, captain of the guardof the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar, bkilled 2,110,000people. bAnd in Jerusalemitself bhe killed 940,000people bon one stone, until the bloodof his victims bflowed and touched the blood of Zechariah to fulfill what is stated: “And blood touches blood”(Hosea 4:2).,The Gemara clarifies the details of what happened: Nebuzaradan bfound the blood of Zechariah,the son of Jehoiada the priest, and saw bthat it was bubbling upfrom the ground, and bhe said: What is this?Those in the Temple bsaid to him:It is bsacrificial blood that had been pouredthere. bHe broughtanimal bblood,compared it to the blood bubbling up from the ground, bandsaw that bit was not similarto it.,Nebuzaradan bsaid tothem: bIf you tell mewhose blood this is, it will be bwellfor you. bBut if not, I will comb your flesh with iron combs. They said to him: What shall we say to you? He was a prophet among us, who used to rebuke us about heavenly matters,and bwe rose up against him, and killed him(II Chronicles 24:20–22), band for many yearsnow bhis blood has not settled. /b,Nebuzaradan bsaid to them: I will appeaseZechariah. bHe broughtthe members of bthe Great Sanhedrin andof ba lesser Sanhedrinand bkilled them alongsidethe bubbling blood, bbutit still bdid not settle.He then brought byoung men and virgins and killed them alongside it, butit still bdid not settle. Hethen bbrought schoolchildren and killed them alongside it, butit still bdid not settle.Finally Nebuzaradan bsaid to him: Zechariah, Zechariah, I have killed the best of them.Would it bplease you if I destroyed them all? When he said this,the blood at last bsettled. /b, bAt that momentNebuzaradan bcontemplatedthe idea of brepentanceand bsaidto himself: bIf, forthe death of bone soul,that of Zechariah, God punishes the Jewish people in bthismanner, then bthat man,that is to say, I, bwho has killed all of those souls, all the more sowill be I be subject to great punishment from God. bHe fled, sent to his house a document detailingwhat was to be done with his property, band convertedto Judaism.,A Sage btaughta ibaraitarelating to this matter: bNaaman,commander of the army of the king of Aram (see II Kings, chapter 5), was not a convert, as he did not accept all of the mitzvot, but rather he bwas a iger toshav /i, a gentile who resides in Eretz Israel and observes the seven Noahide mitzvot. Nebuzaradan,by contrast, bwas a convert,as explained previously.,The Gemara adds that some bof Haman’s descendants studied Torah in Bnei Brak,and some bof Sisera’s descendants taught childrenTorah bin Jerusalem,and some bof Sennacherib’s descendants taught Torah in public. Who are they?They are bShemaya and Avtalyon,the teachers of Hillel the Elder.,As for the incident involving the blood of Zechariah, bthis isalluded to by bthat which is written: “I have set her blood upon the bare rock that it should not be covered”(Ezekiel 24:8).,§ Apropos its discussion of the destruction of the Temple and the calamities that befell Israel, the Gemara cites the verse: b“The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau”(Genesis 27:22), which the Sages expounded as follows: b“The voice”; thisis the cry stirred up by bthe emperor Hadrian, whocaused the Jewish people to cry out when he bkilled six hundred thousand on six hundred thousand in Alexandria of Egypt, twicethe number of men bwho left Egypt. “The voice of Jacob”; this isthe cry aroused by bthe emperor Vespasian, who killed four millionpeople bin the city of Beitar. And some say:He killed bforty millionpeople. b“And the hands are the hands of Esau”; this is the wicked kingdomof Rome bthat destroyed our Temple, burned our Sanctuary, and exiled us from our land. /b, bAlternatively, “the voice is the voice of Jacob”means that bno prayer is effectivein the world bunlesssome member of bthe seed of Jacob hasa part bin it.The second clause in the verse, b“and the hands are the hands of Esau,”means that bno war grants victory unlesssome member of bthe seed of Esau hasa part bin it. /b, bAnd this iswhat bRabbi Elazar says:The verse that says: b“You shall be hid from the scourge of the tongue”(Job 5:21), means: bYou shallneed to bhide on account of quarrelsprovoked bby the tongue. Rav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “By the rivers of Babylonia, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion”(Psalms 137:1)? This bteaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, showed David the destruction of the First Temple and the destruction of the Second Temple.He saw the destruction of bthe First Temple, as it is stated: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept.”He saw the destruction of the bSecond Temple, as it is writtenlater in that same psalm: b“Remember, O Lord, against the children of Edom the day of Jerusalem, when they said: Raze it, raze it, to its very foundation”(Psalms 137:7), as the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans, “the children of Edom.”, bRav Yehuda saysthat bShmuel says, and some saythat it was bRabbi Amiwho says this, band some saythat bit was taught in a ibaraita /i:There was ban incident involving four hundred boys and girls who were taken as captives forthe purpose of bprostitution.These children bsensed on their own what they were expectedto do, and bthey said: If wecommit suicide and bdrown in the sea,will bwe come toeternal blife in the World-to-Come? The oldestchild bamong them expoundedthe verse: b“The Lord said, I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea”(Psalms 68:23). b“I will bring back from Bashan,”i.e., bfrom between the teeth [ ibein shen /i] of the lion,and b“I will bring them back from the depths of the sea”is referring to bthose who drown in the seafor the sake of Heaven., bWhen the girls heard this, they all leapt and fell into the sea. The boysthen bdrew an ia fortiori /iinference bwith regard to themselves and said: If thesegirls, bfor whomsexual intercourse with men bis their natural way,act in bsucha manner, then bwe, for whomsexual intercourse with men bis not our natural way,should ball the more soconduct ourselves likewise. bThey too leapt into the sea. Concerning themand others like them bthe verse states: “As For Your sake we are killed all the day long; we are reckoned as sheep for the slaughter”(Psalms 44:23)., bAnd Rav Yehuda said: Thisverse applies to the bwoman and her seven sonswho died as martyrs for the sake of the sanctification of God’s name. The incident occurred as follows: bThey broughtin bthe firstof the woman’s sons bbefore the emperorand bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “I am the Lord your God”(Exodus 20:2). bTheyimmediately btook him out and killed him. /b, bAnd theythen bbroughtin banotherson bbefore the emperor,and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “You shall have no other gods beside Me”(Exodus 20:3). And so bthey took him out and killed him. Theythen bbrought inyet banotherson before the emperor, and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “He that sacrifices to any god,save to the Lord only, bhe shall be utterly destroyed”(Exodus 22:19). And so bthey took him out and killed him. /b, bTheythen bbroughtin banotherson, and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “You shall not bow down to any other god”(Exodus 34:14). And so bthey took him out and killed him. Theythen bbroughtin yet banotherson, and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One”(Deuteronomy 6:4). And so bthey took him out and killed him. /b, bTheythen bbroughtin banotherson, and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “Know therefore this today, and consider it in your heart, that the Lord, He is God in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is no other”(Deuteronomy 4:39). And so bthey took him out and killed him. /b, bTheythen bbroughtin yet banotherson, and bsaid to him: Worship the idol. He said to them:I cannot do so, as bit is written in the Torah: “You have avouched the Lordthis day to be your God… band the Lord has avouched you this dayto be a people for His own possession” (Deuteronomy 26:17–18). bWe already took an oath to the Holy One, Blessed be He, that we will not exchange Him for a different god, and He too has taken an oath to us that He will not exchange us for another nation. /b,It was the youngest brother who had said this, and the emperor pitied him. Seeking a way to spare the boy’s life, bthe emperor said to him: I will throw down my seal before you; bend over and pick it up, so thatpeople bwill saythat bhe has accepted the king’s authority [ iharmana /i].The boy bsaid to him: Woe [ iḥaval /i] to you, Caesar, woe to you, Caesar.If you think that bfor the sake of your honorI should fulfill your command and do bthis,then bfor the sake of the honor of the Holy One, Blessed be He, all the more soshould I fulfill His command.,As bthey were taking him out to be killed, his mother said to them: Give him to me so that I may give him a small kiss. She said to him: My son, go and say to your father Abraham, You bound oneson to the baltar, but I bound seven altars. She tooin the end bwent up to the roof, fell, and died. A Divine Voice emerged and said: “A joyful mother of children”(Psalms 113:9), as she raised her children to be devoted in their service of God., bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi saysconcerning the verse: “For Your sake we are killed all the day long” (Psalms 44:23), that bthisis referring to bcircumcision, which was given for the eighthday, as the blood of our newborn sons is spilled for the sake of the covet with God. bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish says:This verse was stated in reference to bTorah scholars who demonstrate the ihalakhotof slaughter on themselves,meaning that they demonstrate on their own bodies how ritual slaughter should be performed and occasionally injure themselves in the process. This is bas Rava says: A person may demonstrate anything using himselfto illustrate the act bexcept for slaughter and another matter,a euphemism for sexual intercourse., bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak says: Thesepeople in the verse bare Torah scholars who kill themselves over the words of Torah, in accordance withthe statement of bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish. As Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish says: The words of the Torah endure only for one who kills himself over them, as it is stated: “This is the Torah, when a man dies in a tent”(Numbers 19:14). bRabba bar bar Ḥana saysthat bRabbi Yoḥa says: Forty ise’a/b |
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17. Babylonian Talmud, Hulin, 60b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 60b. לר' חנינא בר פפא מהו כיון דלא כתב בהו למינהו לא מיחייב או דילמא כיון דהסכים אידיהו כמאן דכתיב בהו למינהו דמיא תיקו:,רבי שמעון בן פזי רמי כתיב (בראשית א, טז) ויעש אלהים את שני המאורות הגדולים וכתיב את המאור הגדול ואת המאור הקטן אמרה ירח לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע אפשר לשני מלכים שישתמשו בכתר אחד אמר לה לכי ומעטי את עצמך,אמרה לפניו רבש"ע הואיל ואמרתי לפניך דבר הגון אמעיט את עצמי אמר לה לכי ומשול ביום ובלילה אמרה ליה מאי רבותיה דשרגא בטיהרא מאי אהני אמר לה זיל לימנו בך ישראל ימים ושנים אמרה ליה יומא נמי אי אפשר דלא מנו ביה תקופותא דכתיב (בראשית א, יד) והיו לאותות ולמועדים ולימים ושנים זיל ליקרו צדיקי בשמיך (עמוס ז, ב) יעקב הקטן שמואל הקטן (שמואל א יז, יד) דוד הקטן,חזייה דלא קא מיתבא דעתה אמר הקב"ה הביאו כפרה עלי שמיעטתי את הירח והיינו דאמר ר"ש בן לקיש מה נשתנה שעיר של ראש חדש שנאמר בו (במדבר כח, טו) לה' אמר הקב"ה שעיר זה יהא כפרה על שמיעטתי את הירח,רב אסי רמי כתיב (בראשית א, יב) ותוצא הארץ דשא בתלת בשבתא וכתיב (בראשית ב, ה) וכל שיח השדה טרם יהיה בארץ במעלי שבתא מלמד שיצאו דשאים ועמדו על פתח קרקע עד שבא אדם הראשון ובקש עליהם רחמים וירדו גשמים וצמחו ללמדך שהקב"ה מתאוה לתפלתן של צדיקים,רב נחמן בר פפא הויא ליה ההיא גינתא שדי ביה ביזרני ולא צמח בעא רחמי אתא מיטרא וצמח אמר היינו דרב אסי:,אמר רב חנן בר רבא (דברים יד, ז) השסועה בריה בפני עצמה היא שיש לה שני גבין ושני שדראות וכי משה רבינו קניגי היה או בליסטרי היה מכאן תשובה לאומר אין תורה מן השמים,א"ל רב חסדא לרב תחליפא בר אבינא זיל כתוב קניגי ובליסטרי באגדתיך ופרשה,(יהושע יג, ג) (ואת) חמשת סרני פלשתים העזתי והאשדודי האשקלוני הגתי והעקרוני והעוים אמר חמשה וחשיב שיתא אמר ר' יונתן ארונקי שלהן חמשה א"ל רב חסדא לר' תחליפא בר אבינא כתוב ארונקי באגדתיך ופרשה ופליגא דרב דאמר רב עוים מתימן באו,תניא נמי הכי עוים מתימן באו ולמה נקרא שמן עוים שעיותו את מקומן ד"א עוים שאיוו לאלהות הרבה ד"א עוים שכל הרואה אותם אוחזתו עוית א"ר יוסף ואית להו שיתסרי דרי שיני לכל חד וחד,אמר ר"ש בן לקיש הרבה מקראות שראויין לשרוף והן הן גופי תורה (דברים ב, כג) והעוים היושבים בחצרים עד עזה מאי נפקא לן מינה,מדאשבעיה אבימלך לאברהם (בראשית כא, כג) אם תשקור לי ולניני ולנכדי אמר הקב"ה ליתו כפתורים ליפקו מעוים דהיינו פלשתים וליתו ישראל ליפקו מכפתורים,כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר (במדבר כא, כו) כי חשבון עיר סיחון מלך האמורי היא והוא נלחם במלך מואב וגו' מאי נפקא מינה דאמר להו הקב"ה לישראל (דברים ב, ט) אל תצר את מואב אמר הקב"ה ליתי סיחון ליפוק ממואב וליתו ישראל וליפקו מסיחון והיינו דאמר רב פפא עמון ומואב טיהרו בסיחון,(דברים ג, ט) צידונים יקראו לחרמון שריון תנא שניר ושריון מהרי ארץ ישראל מלמד שכל אחד ואחד מאומות העולם הלך ובנה לו כרך גדול לעצמו והעלה לו על שם הרי ארץ ישראל ללמדך שאפילו הרי ארץ ישראל חביבין על האומות העולם,כיוצא בו (בראשית מז, כא) ואת העם העביר אותו לערים מאי נפקא מינה דלא ליקרו לאחיו גלוותא:,סימני העוף לא נאמרו: ולא והתניא (ויקרא יא, יג) נשר | 60b. bwhat isthe ihalakha baccording to Rabbi Ḥanina bar Pappa?Shall one say that bsincethe phrase b“after its kind” is not writtenas a mitzva bwith regard to them,one is bnot liablefor transgressing the prohibition against mixing diverse kinds? bOr perhaps, sinceGod bagreed with themafter the fact, as the verse states: “Let the Lord rejoice in His works,” bit is as ifthe mitzva b“after its kind” is written with regard to them.The Gemara responds: The dilemma bshall standunresolved.,§ bRabbi Shimon ben Pazi raises a contradictionbetween two verses. It bis written: “And God made the two great lights”(Genesis 1:16), bandit bisalso bwrittenin the same verse: b“The greater lightto rule the day, band the lesser lightto rule the night,” indicating that only one was great. Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi explains: When God first created the sun and the moon, they were equally bright. Then, bthe moon said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe,is it bpossible for two kings to serve with one crown?One of us must be subservient to the other. God therefore bsaid to her,i.e., the moon: If so, bgo and diminish yourself. /b, bShe said before Him: Master of the Universe, since I said a correctobservation bbefore You,must bI diminish myself?God bsaid to her:As compensation, bgo and ruleboth bduring the dayalong with the sun band during the night. She said to Him: What is the greatness ofshining alongside the sun? bWhat use is a candle in the middle of the day?God bsaid to her: Go; let the Jewish people count the days and years with you,and this will be your greatness. bShe said to Him: Butthe Jewish people will count with bthe sun as well,as bit is impossible that they will not count seasons with it, as it is written: “And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years”(Genesis 1:14). God said to her: bGo; let righteous men be named after you.Just as you are called the lesser [ ihakatan /i] light, there will be bYa’akov HaKatan,i.e., Jacob our forefather (see Amos 7:2), bShmuel HaKatanthe itanna /i, and bDavid HaKatan,i.e., King David (see I Samuel 17:14).,God bsaw thatthe moon bwas not comforted. The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Bring atonement for me, since I diminished the moon.The Gemara notes: bAnd this is what Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish says: What is differentabout the bgoatoffering bofthe bNew Moon, thatit bis stated with regard to it: “For the Lord”(Numbers 28:15)? bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, said: This goat shall be an atonementfor Me bfor having diminishedthe size of bthe moon. /b,§ bRav Asi raises a contradictionbetween two verses. It bis written: “And the earth brought forth grass”(Genesis 1:12), bon the third day of the weekof Creation. bAndit bisalso bwritten: “No shrub of the field was yet in the earth”(Genesis 2:5), bon Shabbat eve,the sixth day of Creation, immediately before Adam was created. Rav Asi explains: This bteaches that the grasses emergedon the third day band stood at the opening of the ground,but they did not grow buntil Adam, the firstman, bcame and prayed for mercy upon them, and rain came, and they sprouted.And this is meant bto teach you that the Holy One, Blessed be He, desires the prayers of the righteous. /b,The Gemara recounts: bRav Naḥman bar Pappa had a certain garden. He planted seeds but they did not sprout. He prayed for mercy,and brain came, andthey bsprouted. He said: This iswhat is meant by the statement bof Rav Asi,that the Holy One, Blessed be He, desires the prayers of the righteous.,§ In one of the passages discussing kosher and non-kosher animals, the Torah states: “Nevertheless, these you shall not eat of them that only chew the cud, or of them that have split hooves that are cloven [ ihashesua /i]: The camel, and the hare, and the hyrax” (Deuteronomy 14:7). bRav Ḥa bar Rava said: “ iHashesua /i”is not a redundant description of the split hooves but ba distinct creature, which has two backs and two spinesand therefore looks like an entirely cloven animal. One might ask: bBut was Moses our teacher a hunter, or was he an archer,who was familiar with the most exotic animals? Rather, bfrom herethere is ba refutation to those who say that the Torah is not from Heaven,since Moses could not have known of the existence of such an animal save by divine revelation., bRav Ḥisda said to Rav Taḥlifa bar Avina: Go writethis statement about the bhunter [ ikinnigi /i] andthe barcher [ iballisteri /i] in yourbook of iaggada /i, and explainthose two words, since some are unfamiliar with them.,The Gemara relates another statement. The verse states: b“The five lords of the Philistines: The Gazite, and the Ashdodite, the Ashkelonite, the Gittite, and the Ekronite; also the Avvim”(Joshua 13:3). The verse is difficult, since it first bsaidthere are bfivelords of the Philistines, bbut itthen blists six. Rabbi Yonatan said:There were in fact six lords, but bthe greatest of themwere only bfive. Rav Ḥisda said to Rav Taḥlifa bar Avina: Writethis statement about bthe greatest [ iarunekei /i] in yourbook of iaggada /i, and explainthat word. The Gemara notes: bAndthis statement bdisagreeswith the opinion bof Rav, as Rav says:The bAvvimwere not Philistines; rather, they bcame from Teiman. /b, bThis is also taughtin a ibaraita /i: The bAvvim came from Teiman. And why were they called Avvimand not Teimanim? bBecause they corrupted [ iivvetu /i]and destroyed btheir placeof origin when they left. bAlternatively,they were called bAvvim since they desired [ iivvu /i] many deities. Alternatively,they were called bAvvim sincethey were so fearsome that ball who saw them were seized by convulsions [ iavit /i]. Rav Yosef said: And each one of them has sixteen rows of teeth. /b,The Gemara cites another statement related to the Avvim: bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish says:There are bmany verses thatare seemingly bfit to be burned as books of the heretics,since they appear redundant or frivolous, bandyet bthey are themselves the essence of Torah.For example, the verse states: b“And the Avvim, that dwelt in villages as far as Gaza,the Caphtorim, that came forth out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their stead” (Deuteronomy 2:23). bWhatpractical bdifferencedoes this make bfor us? /b,The verse teaches the following: bSince Abimelech,king of the Philistines, badministered an oath to Abraham: “That you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my grandson”(Genesis 21:23), the Jewish people were prohibited from conquering the land of the Philistines until four generations had passed. Therefore, bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Letthe bCaphtorim comeand bremovethe land bfromthe bAvvim, who arethe same as the bPhilistines, and let Israel comeand bremoveit bfrom the Caphtorim,circumventing the prohibition., bSimilarly, you saywith regard to another apparently unnecessary verse, describing a city that the Israelites conquered: b“For Heshbon was the city of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who had fought against theformer bking of Moab,and taken all his land out of his hand” (Numbers 21:26). bWhat is thepractical bdifferencein knowing this information? It teaches bthatsince bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Israel: “Be not at enmity with Moab”(Deuteronomy 2:9), the Jewish people were prohibited from conquering the land of Moab. Therefore, bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Let Sihon comeand bremovethe land bfrom Moab, and let Israel comeand bremoveit bfrom Sihon.The Gemara notes: bAnd this is what Rav Pappa says:The lands of bAmmon and Moab were purified by Sihon,i.e., rendered permitted for conquest.,The Gemara cites another seemingly superfluous verse, describing Mount Hermon: b“Which Hermon the Sidonians call Sirion,and the Amorites call it Senir” (Deuteronomy 3:9). A Sage btaught: Senir and Sirion are mountains of Eretz Yisrael.The verse bteaches that every one of the nations of the world went and built itself a great cityon Mount Hermon, band named it afterone of bthe mountains of Eretz Yisrael, teaching you that even the mountains of Eretz Yisrael are beloved by the nations of the world. /b, bSimilarly,a difficult verse describes Joseph’s treatment of the Egyptians: b“And as for the people, he removed them city by city”(Genesis 47:21). bWhat is thepractical bdifferenceof this information? It teaches Joseph’s love for his brothers, as he transferred the entire Egyptian population bso that they would not call his brothers exiles. /b,§ The mishna states: bThe signs of thekosher bbird were notexplicitly bstatedin the Torah. The Gemara asks: bAndis it true that they were bnotstated in the Torah? bBut isn’t it taughtin a ibaraita /i: b“The inesher /i”(Leviticus 11:13) is a non-kosher bird. |
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18. Babylonian Talmud, Megillah, 14b, 31b, 14a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 14a. משל דאחשורוש והמן למה הדבר דומה לשני בני אדם לאחד היה לו תל בתוך שדהו ולאחד היה לו חריץ בתוך שדהו בעל חריץ אמר מי יתן לי תל זה בדמים בעל התל אמר מי יתן לי חריץ זה בדמים,לימים נזדווגו זה אצל זה אמר לו בעל חריץ לבעל התל מכור לי תילך אמר לו טול אותה בחנם והלואי,ויסר המלך את טבעתו אמר רבי אבא בר כהנא גדולה הסרת טבעת יותר מארבעים ושמונה נביאים ושבע נביאות שנתנבאו להן לישראל שכולן לא החזירום למוטב ואילו הסרת טבעת החזירתן למוטב,ת"ר ארבעים ושמונה נביאים ושבע נביאות נתנבאו להם לישראל ולא פחתו ולא הותירו על מה שכתוב בתורה חוץ ממקרא מגילה,מאי דרוש אמר רבי חייא בר אבין אמר רבי יהושע בן קרחה ומה מעבדות לחירות אמרי' שירה ממיתה לחיים לא כל שכן,אי הכי הלל נמי נימא לפי שאין אומרים הלל על נס שבחוצה לארץ יציאת מצרים דנס שבחוצה לארץ היכי אמרינן שירה,כדתניא עד שלא נכנסו ישראל לארץ הוכשרו כל ארצות לומר שירה משנכנסו ישראל לארץ לא הוכשרו כל הארצות לומר שירה,רב נחמן אמר קרייתא זו הלילא רבא אמר בשלמא התם (תהלים קיג, א) הללו עבדי ה' ולא עבדי פרעה אלא הכא הללו עבדי ה' ולא עבדי אחשורוש אכתי עבדי אחשורוש אנן,בין לרבא בין לר"נ קשיא והא תניא משנכנסו לארץ לא הוכשרו כל הארצות לומר שירה כיון שגלו חזרו להכשירן הראשון,ותו ליכא והכתיב (שמואל א א, א) ויהי איש אחד מן הרמתים צופים אחד ממאתים צופים שנתנבאו להם לישראל,מיהוה טובא הוו כדתניא הרבה נביאים עמדו להם לישראל כפלים כיוצאי מצרים אלא נבואה שהוצרכה לדורות נכתבה ושלא הוצרכה לא נכתבה,רבי שמואל בר נחמני אמר אדם הבא משתי רמות שצופות זו את זו רבי חנין אמר אדם הבא מבני אדם שעומדין ברומו של עולם ומאן נינהו בני קרח דכתיב (במדבר כו, יא) ובני קרח לא מתו תנא משום רבינו מקום נתבצר להם בגיהנם ועמדו עליו,שבע נביאות מאן נינהו שרה מרים דבורה חנה אביגיל חולדה ואסתר שרה דכתיב (בראשית יא, כט) אבי מלכה ואבי יסכה ואמר ר' יצחק יסכה זו שרה ולמה נקרא שמה יסכה שסכתה ברוח הקדש שנאמר (בראשית כא, יב) כל אשר תאמר אליך שרה שמע בקולה ד"א יסכה שהכל סוכין ביופיה,מרים דכתיב (שמות טו, כ) ותקח מרים הנביאה אחות אהרן ולא אחות משה אמר ר"נ אמר רב שהיתה מתנבאה כשהיא אחות אהרן ואומרת עתידה אמי שתלד בן שיושיע את ישראל ובשעה שנולד נתמלא כל הבית כולו אורה עמד אביה ונשקה על ראשה אמר לה בתי נתקיימה נבואתיך,וכיון שהשליכוהו ליאור עמד אביה וטפחה על ראשה ואמר לה בתי היכן נבואתיך היינו דכתיב (שמות ב, ד) ותתצב אחותו מרחוק לדעה לדעת מה יהא בסוף נבואתה,דבורה דכתיב (שופטים ד, ד) ודבורה אשה נביאה אשת לפידות מאי אשת לפידות שהיתה עושה פתילות למקדש,(שופטים ד, ה) והיא יושבת תחת תומר מאי שנא תחת תומר אמר ר' שמעון בן אבשלום משום יחוד דבר אחר מה תמר זה אין לו אלא לב אחד אף ישראל שבאותו הדור לא היה להם אלא לב אחד לאביהן שבשמים,חנה דכתיב (שמואל א ב, א) ותתפלל חנה ותאמר עלץ לבי בה' רמה קרני בה' רמה קרני ולא רמה פכי דוד ושלמה שנמשחו בקרן נמשכה מלכותן שאול ויהוא שנמשחו בפך לא נמשכה מלכותן,(שמואל א ב, ב) אין קדוש כה' כי אין בלתך אמר רב יהודה בר מנשיא אל תקרי בלתך אלא לבלותך שלא כמדת הקב"ה מדת בשר ודם מדת בשר ודם מעשה ידיו מבלין אותו אבל הקדוש ברוך הוא מבלה מעשה ידיו,(שמואל א ב, ב) ואין צור כאלהינו אין צייר כאלהינו אדם צר צורה על גבי הכותל ואינו יכול להטיל בה רוח ונשמה קרבים ובני מעים אבל הקב"ה צר צורה בתוך צורה ומטיל בה רוח ונשמה קרבים ובני מעים,אביגיל דכתיב (שמואל א כה, כ) והיה היא רוכבת על החמור ויורדת בסתר ההר בסתר ההר מן ההר מיבעי ליה,אמר רבה בר שמואל על עסקי דם הבא מן הסתרים נטלה דם והראתה לו אמר לה וכי מראין דם בלילה אמרה לו וכי דנין דיני נפשות בלילה אמר לה | 14a. The actions of bAhasuerus and Hamancan be understood with ba parable; to what may they be compared? To two individuals, oneof whom bhad a mound in the middle of his field and the otherof whom bhad a ditch in the middle of his field,each one suffering from his own predicament. bThe owner of the ditch,noticing the other’s mound of dirt, bsaidto himself: bWho will give me this moundof dirt suitable for filling in my ditch; I would even be willing to pay bforit with bmoney,and bthe owner of the mound,noticing the other’s ditch, bsaidto himself: bWho will give me this ditch for money,so that I may use it to remove the mound of earth from my property?,At a later point, bone day, theyhappened to have bmet one another. The owner of the ditch said to the owner of the mound: Sell me your moundso I can fill in my ditch. The mound’s owner, anxious to rid himself of the excess dirt on his property, bsaid to him: Take it for free; if onlyyou had done so sooner. Similarly, Ahasuerus himself wanted to destroy the Jews. As he was delighted that Haman had similar aspirations and was willing to do the job for him, he demanded no money from him.,§ The verse states: b“And the king removed his ringfrom his hand” (Esther 3:10). bRabbi Abba bar Kahana said: The removal ofAhasuerus’s bringfor the sealing of Haman’s decree bwas more effective than the forty-eight prophets and the seven prophetesses who prophesied on behalf of the Jewish people. As, they were all unable to returnthe Jewish people bto the right way, but the removal ofAhasuerus’s bring returned them to the right way,since it brought them to repentance., bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: bForty-eight prophets and seven prophetesses prophesied on behalf of the Jewish people, and they neither subtracted from nor added onto what is written in the Torah,introducing no changes or additions to the mitzvot bexcept for the reading of the Megilla,which they added as an obligation for all future generations.,The Gemara asks: bWhat expositionled them to determine that this was a proper mode of action? On what basis did they add this mitzva? bRabbi Ḥiyya bar Avin saidthat bRabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa saidthat they reasoned as follows: bIf,when recalling the exodus from Egypt, in which the Jews were delivered bfrom slavery to freedom, we recite songsof praise, the Song of the Sea and the hymns of ihallel /i, then, in order to properly recall the miracle of Purim and commemorate God’s delivering us bfrom death to life,is it bnot all the more sothe case that we must sing God’s praise by reading the story in the Megilla?,The Gemara asks: bIf so,our obligation should be at least as great as when we recall the exodus from Egypt, and blet us also recite ihallel /ion Purim. The Gemara answers: iHallelis not said on Purim, bbecause ihallelis not recited on a miraclethat occurred boutside EretzYisrael. The Gemara asks: If so, with regard to bthe exodus from Egyptas well, bwhich was a miraclethat occurred boutside EretzYisrael, bhow are we able to recite songsof praise?,The Gemara answers: bAs it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bPrior tothe time when bthe Jewish people entered EretzYisrael, ball lands weredeemed bfitfor bsongsof praise bto be recitedfor miracles performed within their borders, as all lands were treated equally. But bafter the Jewish people entered EretzYisrael, that land became endowed with greater sanctity, band all theother blands were no longerdeemed bfitfor bsongsof praise bto be recitedfor miracles performed within them., bRav Naḥman saidan alternative answer as to why ihallelis not recited on Purim: bThe reading ofthe Megilla itself bisan act of reciting ihallel /i. Rava saida third reason why ihallelis not recited on Purim: bGrantedthat ihallelis said bthere,when recalling the exodus from Egypt, as after the salvation there, they could recite the phrase in ihallel /i: b“Give praise, O servants of the Lord”(Psalms 113:1); after their servitude to Pharaoh ended with their salvation, they were truly servants of the Lord band not servants of Pharaoh. Butcan it be said bhere,after the limited salvation commemorated on Purim: b“Give praise, O servants of the Lord,”which would indicate that after the salvation the Jewish people were only servants of the Lord band not servants of Ahasuerus?No, even after the miracle of Purim, bwe were still the servants of Ahasuerus,as the Jews remained in exile under Persian rule, and consequently the salvation, which was incomplete, did not merit an obligation to say ihallel /i.,The Gemara asks: bBoth according tothe opinion of bRava and according tothe opinion of bRav Naḥman,this is bdifficult. Isn’t it taughtin the ibaraitacited earlier: bAfter the Jewish people entered EretzYisrael, that land became endowed with greater sanctity, band all theother blands were no longerdeemed bfitfor bsongsof praise bto be recitedfor miracles performed within them. Therefore, there should be no ihallelobligation on Purim for the miracle performed outside of the land of Israel, and Rav Naḥman’s and Rava’s alternative explanations are incorrect. The Gemara answers: They understood differently, as it can be argued that bwhenthe people bwere exiledfrom Eretz Yisrael, the other lands breturned to their initial suitability,and were once again deemed fit for reciting ihallelon miracles performed within them.,With regard to the statement that forty-eight prophets and seven prophetesses prophesied on behalf of the Jewish people, the Gemara asks: bIs there no one else? Isn’t it writtenwith regard to Samuel’s father, Elkanah: b“And there was a certain [ ieḥad /i] man from Ramathaim-zophim”(I Samuel 1:1), which is expounded as follows to indicate that Elkanah was a prophet: He was bone [ ieḥad /i] of two hundred [ imata’im /i] prophets [ itzofim /i] who prophesied on behalf of the Jewish people.If so, why was it stated here that there were only forty-eight prophets?,The Gemara answers: In fact, bthere were moreprophets, bas it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bMany prophets arose for the Jewish people,numbering bdouble thenumber of Israelites bwho left Egypt. However,only a portion of the prophecies were recorded, because only bprophecy that was needed forfuture bgenerations was writtendown in the Bible for posterity, bbut that which was not needed,as it was not pertinent to later generations, bwas not written.Therefore, the fifty-five prophets recorded in the Bible, although not the only prophets of the Jewish people, were the only ones recorded, due to their eternal messages., bRabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani saidanother explanation of the verse “And there was a certain man from Ramathaim-zophim”: bA man who comes from two heights [ iramot /i] that face [ itzofot /i] one another. Rabbi Ḥanin saidan additional interpretation: bA man who descends from people who stood at the height of [ irumo /i] the world.The Gemara asks: bAnd who are thesepeople? The Gemara answers: These are the bsons of Korah, as it is written: “But the sons of Korah did not die”(Numbers 26:11), and with regard to them bit is taught in the name of our teacher,Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi: A high bplace was set aside for them in Gehenna,as the sons of Korah repented in their hearts, and were consequently not propelled very far down in Gehenna when the earth opened to swallow Korah and his followers; band they stood onthis high place and sung to the Lord. They alone stood at the height of the lower world.,§ The Gemara asks with regard to the prophetesses recorded in the ibaraita /i: bWho were the seven prophetesses?The Gemara answers: bSarah, Miriam, Deborah, Hannah, Abigail, Huldah, and Esther.The Gemara offers textual support: bSarah, as it is written:“Haran, bthe father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah”(Genesis 11:29). bAnd Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Iscah isin fact bSarah. And why was she called Iscah? For she saw [ isakhta /i] by means of divine inspiration, as it is stated: “In all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice”(Genesis 21:12). bAlternatively,Sarah was also called bIscah, for all gazed [ isokhin /i] upon her beauty. /b, bMiriamwas a prophetess, bas it is writtenexplicitly: b“And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, tooka timbrel in her hand” (Exodus 15:20). The Gemara asks: Was she the sister only of Aaron, band not the sister of Moses?Why does the verse mention only one of her brothers? bRav Naḥman saidthat bRav said: For she prophesied when she was the sister of Aaron,i.e., she prophesied since her youth, even before Moses was born, band she would say: My mother is destined to bear a son who will deliver the Jewish peopleto salvation. bAnd at the time whenMoses bwas born the entire house was filled with light,and bher father stood and kissed her on the head,and bsaid to her: My daughter, your prophecy has been fulfilled. /b, bBut onceMoses bwas cast into the river, her father arose and rapped her on the head, saying to her: My daughter, where is your prophecynow, as it looked as though the young Moses would soon meet his end. bThis isthe meaning of bthatwhich bis writtenwith regard to Miriam’s watching Moses in the river: b“And his sister stood at a distance to knowwhat would be done to him” b( /bExodus 2:4), i.e., bto know what would be with the end of her prophecy,as she had prophesied that her brother was destined to be the savior of the Jewish people., bDeborahwas a prophetess, bas it is writtenexplicitly: b“And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth”(Judges 4:4). The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning of b“the wife of Lappidoth”?The Gemara answers: bFor she used to make wicks for the Sanctuary,and due to the flames [ ilappidot /i] on these wicks she was called the wife of Lappidoth, literally, a woman of flames.,With regard to Deborah, it says: b“And she sat under a palm tree”(Judges 4:5). The Gemara asks: bWhat is differentand unique with regard to her sitting b“under a palm tree”that there is a need for it to be written? bRabbi Shimon ben Avshalom said:It is bdue tothe prohibition against bbeing alone togetherwith a man. Since men would come before her for judgment, she established for herself a place out in the open and visible to all, in order to avoid a situation in which she would be secluded with a man behind closed doors. bAlternatively,the verse means: bJust as a palm tree has only one heart,as a palm tree does not send out separate branches, but rather has only one main trunk, bso too, the Jewish people in that generation had only one heart,directed bto their Father in Heaven. /b, bHannahwas a prophetess, bas it is written: “And Hannah prayed and said, My heart rejoices in the Lord, my horn is exalted in the Lord”(I Samuel 2:1), and her words were prophecy, in that she said: b“My horn is exalted,” and not: My pitcher is exalted.As, with regard to bDavid and Solomon, who were anointedwith oil bfrom a horn, their kingship continued,whereas with regard to bSaul and Jehu, who were anointedwith oil bfrom a pitcher, their kingship did not continue.This demonstrates that Hannah was a prophetess, as she prophesied that only those anointed with oil from a horn will merit that their kingships continue.,Apropos the song of Hannah, the Gemara further explains her words: b“There is none sacred as the Lord; for there is none beside You [ ibiltekha /i]”(I Samuel 2:2). bRav Yehuda bar Menashya said: Do not readit as ibiltekha /i,“beside You,” bbut ratherread it as ilevalotekha /i,to outlast You. bAs the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, is unlike the attribute of flesh and blood.It is an attribute of man that bhis handiwork outlasts himand continues to exist even after he dies, bbut the Holy One, Blessed be He, outlasts His handiwork,as He exists eternally.,Hannah further said: b“Neither is there any rock [ itzur /i] like our God”(I Samuel 2:1). This can be understood as saying that bthere is no artist [ itzayyar /i] like our God.How is He better than all other artists? bMan fashions a form upon a wall, but is unable to endow it with breath and a soul,or fill it with binnards and intestines, whereas the Holy One, Blessed be He, fashions a formof a fetus binside the formof its mother, rather than on a flat surface, band endows it with breath and a souland fills it with binnards and intestines. /b, bAbigailwas a prophetess, bas it is written: “And it was so, as she rode on the donkey, and came down by the covert of the mountain”(I Samuel 25:20). The Gemara asks: Why does it say: b“By the covert [ ibeseter /i] of the mountain”? It should have said: From the mountain. /b,The Gemara answers that in fact this must be understood as an allusion to something else. bRabba bar Shmuel said: Abigail,in her attempt to prevent David from killing her husband Nabal, came to David and questioned him bon account ofmenstrual bblood that comes from the hidden parts [ isetarim /i]of a body. How so? bShe tooka blood-stained cloth band showed it to him,asking him to rule on her status, whether or not she was ritually impure as a menstruating woman. bHe said to her: Is blood shown at night?One does not examine blood-stained cloths at night, as it is difficult to distinguish between the different shades by candlelight. bShe said to him:If so, you should also remember another ihalakha /i: bArecases of bcapital law tried at night?Since one does not try capital cases at night, you cannot condemn Nabal to death at night. David bsaid to her: /b |
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19. Babylonian Talmud, Moed Qatan, 16b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 16b. אף דברי תורה בסתר,יצא רבי חייא ושנה לשני בני אחיו בשוק לרב ולרבה בר בר חנה שמע ר' איקפד אתא ר' חייא לאיתחזויי ליה א"ל עייא מי קורא לך בחוץ ידע דנקט מילתא בדעתיה נהג נזיפותא בנפשיה תלתין יומין,ביום תלתין שלח ליה תא הדר שלח ליה דלא ליתי,מעיקרא מאי סבר ולבסוף מאי סבר מעיקרא סבר מקצת היום ככולו ולבסוף סבר לא אמרינן מקצת היום ככולו,לסוף אתא א"ל אמאי אתית א"ל דשלח לי מר דליתי והא שלחי לך דלא תיתי א"ל זה ראיתי וזה לא ראיתי קרי עליה (משלי טז, ז) ברצות ה' דרכי איש גם אויביו ישלים אתו,מ"ט עבד מר הכי א"ל דכתיב (משלי א, כ) חכמות בחוץ תרונה א"ל אם קרית לא שנית ואם שנית לא שילשת ואם שילשת לא פירשו לך,חכמות בחוץ תרונה כדרבא דאמר רבא כל העוסק בתורה מבפנים תורתו מכרזת עליו מבחוץ,והא כתיב (ישעיהו מח, טז) לא מראש בסתר דברתי ההוא ביומי דכלה,ור' חייא האי חמוקי ירכיך מאי עביד לה מוקי לה בצדקה ובגמילות חסדים,אלמא נזיפה דידהו תלתין יומין נזיפת נשיא שאני,ונזיפה דידן כמה הוי חד יומא כי הא דשמואל ומר עוקבא כי הוו יתבי גרס שמעתא הוה יתיב מר עוקבא קמיה דשמואל ברחוק ד' אמות וכי הוו יתבי בדינא הוה יתיב שמואל קמיה דמר עוקבא ברחוק ד' אמות והוו חייקי ליה דוכתא למר עוקבא בציפתא ויתיב עילויה כי היכי דלישתמען מיליה,כל יומא הוה מלוי ליה מר עוקבא לשמואל עד אושפיזיה יומא חד איטריד בדיניה הוה אזיל שמואל בתריה כי מטא לביתיה א"ל לא נגה לך לישרי לי מר בתיגריה ידע דנקט מילתא בדעתיה נהג נזיפותא בנפשיה חד יומא,ההיא איתתא דהוות יתבה בשבילא הוות פשטה כרעה וקא מניפה חושלאי והוה חליף ואזיל צורבא מרבנן ולא איכנעה מקמיה אמר כמה חציפא ההיא איתתא אתאי לקמיה דר"נ אמר לה מי שמעת שמתא מפומיה אמרה ליה לא אמר לה זילי נהוגי נזיפותא חד יומא בנפשיך,זוטרא בר טוביה הוה קפסיק סידרא קמיה דרב יהודה כי מטא להאי פסוקא (שמואל ב כג, א) ואלה דברי דוד האחרונים א"ל אחרונים מכלל דאיכא ראשונים ראשונים מאי נינהו,שתיק ולא אמר ליה ולא מידי הדר א"ל אחרונים מכלל דאיכא ראשונים ראשונים מאי היא א"ל מאי דעתך דלא ידע פירושא דהאי קרא לאו גברא רבה הוא ידע דנקט מילתא בדעתיה נהג נזיפותא בנפשיה חד יומא,ודאתן עלה מיהא אחרונים מכלל דאיכא ראשונים ראשונים מאי היא (שמואל ב כב, א) וידבר דוד לה' את דברי השירה הזאת ביום הציל ה' אותו מכף כל אויביו ומכף שאול,אמר לו הקב"ה לדוד דוד שירה אתה אומר על מפלתו של שאול אלמלי אתה שאול והוא דוד איבדתי כמה דוד מפניו,היינו דכתיב (תהלים ז, א) שגיון לדוד אשר שר לה' על דברי כוש בן ימיני וכי כוש שמו והלא שאול שמו אלא מה כושי משונה בעורו אף שאול משונה במעשיו,כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר (במדבר יב, א) על אודות האשה הכושית אשר לקח וכי כושית שמה והלא ציפורה שמה אלא מה כושית משונה בעורה אף ציפורה משונה במעשיה כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר (ירמיהו לח, ז) וישמע עבד מלך הכושי וכי כושי שמו והלא צדקיה שמו אלא מה כושי משונה בעורו אף צדקיה משונה במעשיו,כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר (עמוס ט, ז) הלא כבני כושיים אתם לי (בית) ישראל וכי כושיים שמן והלא ישראל שמן אלא מה כושי משונה בעורו אף ישראל משונין במעשיהן מכל האומות,א"ר שמואל בר נחמני א"ר יונתן מאי דכתיב (שמואל ב כג, א) נאם דוד בן ישי ונאם הגבר הוקם על נאם דוד בן ישי שהקים עולה של תשובה,(שמואל ב כג, ג) אמר אלהי ישראל לי דבר צור ישראל מושל באדם צדיק מושל יראת אלהים מאי קאמר א"ר אבהו ה"ק אמר אלהי ישראל לי דבר צור ישראל אני מושל באדם מי מושל בי צדיק שאני גוזר גזרה ומבטלה,(שמואל ב כג, ח) אלה שמות הגבורים אשר לדוד יושב בשבת וגו' מאי קאמר א"ר אבהו ה"ק ואלה שמות גבורותיו של דוד,יושב בשבת בשעה שהיה יושב בישיבה לא היה יושב על גבי כרים וכסתות אלא על גבי קרקע דכל כמה דהוה רביה עירא היאירי קיים הוה מתני להו לרבנן על גבי כרים וכסתות כי נח נפשיה הוה מתני דוד לרבנן והוה יתיב על גבי קרקע אמרו ליה ליתיב מר אכרים וכסתות לא קביל עליה,תחכמוני אמר רב אמר לו הקב"ה הואיל והשפלת עצמך תהא כמוני שאני גוזר גזרה ואתה מבטלה,ראש השלישים תהא ראש לשלשת אבות הוא עדינו העצני כשהיה יושב ועוסק בתורה היה מעדן עצמו כתולעת ובשעה שיוצא למלחמה היה מקשה עצמו כעץ,על שמונה מאות חלל בפעם אחת שהיה זורק חץ ומפיל שמונה מאות חלל בפעם אחת והיה מתאנח על מאתים דכתיב (דברים לב, ל) איכה ירדף אחד אלף,יצתה בת קול ואמרה (מלכים א טו, ה) רק בדבר אוריה החתי,אמר רבי תנחום בריה דרבי חייא איש כפר עכו אמר רבי יעקב בר אחא אמר ר' שמלאי ואמרי לה אמר ר' תנחום אמר רב הונא ואמרי לה אמר רב הונא לחודיה | 16b. bso too, the words of Torah,which are “the work of the hands of an artist,” i.e., God, must remain bhiddenin the study hall.,Despite Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi’s decree, bRabbi Ḥiyya went out and taught his two nephews, Rav and Rabba bar bar Ḥana, in the marketplace. RabbiYehuda HaNasi bheardwhat he had done and bbecame angrywith him. When bRabbi Ḥiyya cameat some later date bto visit him,Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi mockingly bsaid to him: Iyya, who is calling you outside?By asking this question Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi was intimating that Rabbi Ḥiyya should leave his house. Rabbi Ḥiyya bunderstood thatRabbi Yehuda HaNasi bhad taken the matter to heartand was insulted, and so bhe conductedhimself as if he had been badmonished,as a self-imposed punishment, bfor thirty days. /b, bOn the thirtieth day,Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi bsent hima message, saying: bComeand visit me. However, bhe laterreversed his opinion and bsent himanother message, telling him bnot to come. /b,The Gemara asks: bAt the outset what did he hold, and ultimately what did he hold? Initially,Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi bheld thatthe legal status of bpart of the day is likethat bof an entireday, and since the thirtieth day already begun, Rabbi Ḥiyya’s time of admonition had ended. bBut ultimately he heldthat with regard to this issue bwe do not saythat the legal status of bpart of the day is likethat bof an entireday., bIn the endRabbi Ḥiyya bcameon that same day. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi basked him: Why have you come?Rabbi Ḥiyya bresponded: Becauseyou, bMaster, sentme a message that bI should come.He said to him: bBut I sentyou a second message bthat you should not come. He responded: Thismessenger that you sent, i.e., the first one, bI sawhim and I did as he said, bbut thatmessenger, i.e., the second one, bI did not see.Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi breadthe verse baboutRabbi Ḥiyya: b“When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him”(Proverbs 16:7), as it was clear to him that Rabbi Ḥiyya had merited divine assistance.,§ Concerning the issue with which the entire incident had begun, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi asked Rabbi Ḥiyya: bWhat is the reason thatyou, bthe Master, acted asyou did, ignoring my instructions not to teach Torah in the marketplace? Rabbi Ḥiyya bsaid to him: As it is written: “Wisdom cries aloud in the streets”(Proverbs 1:20), which implies that Torah should be publicized in the streets. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi bsaid to him: If you readthis verse once, byoucertainly bdid not readit ba second timein greater depth; band if you readit ba second time, youcertainly bdid not readit ba third time;and bif you readit ba third time,then bit was notadequately bexplained to you,as it is clear that you do not understand it properly.,The words: b“Wisdom cries aloud in the streets,”should be understood bin accordance withthe opinion bof Rava. As Rava said:With regard to beveryone who occupies himself with Torahstudy binsidethe privacy of his home, bhis Torahknowledge bwill proclaim hisgreatness boutside,as it will be revealed to the masses and they will see his greatness.,The Gemara asks: bBut isn’t it written: “From the beginning I have not spoken in secret”(Isaiah 48:16), implying that the Torah should be taught and proclaimed in public? The Gemara answers: bThatverse is referring to bthe days of the ikalla /i,the gathering for Torah study held during Elul and Adar, when many people come to listen to Torah discourses. During this time, it is not only permitted but even recommended to teach Torah to the masses. In this way, the verse can be explained in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi.,The Gemara asks: bAnd what did Rabbi Ḥiyya do with thisverse: b“Your rounded thighs are like jewels”?How did he understand it? This verse implies that the Torah must be kept hidden in the study hall and not publicized in the marketplace. The Gemara explains: bHe interprets itnot as a reference to Torah, but as referring btoacts of bcharity and loving-kindness,which should certainly be performed in private.,This incident demonstrates bthat, apparently, admonition of thosewho live in Eretz Yisrael lasts for bthirty daysand not for seven days. The Gemara answers that this is not a conclusive proof, since Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi was the iNasi /i. bThe admonition of the iNasi /iof the Sanhedrin bis differenti.e., more severe, than the admonition of anyone else.,The Gemara asks: bAnd howlong bis our admonitionin Babylonia? The Gemara answers: It is only bone day, as inthe case involving bShmuel andthe Exilarch bMar Ukva. When they would sit and study ihalakha /i, Mar Ukva would sit before Shmuel at a distance of four cubitsas a sign of respect. Mar Ukva would conduct himself as though Shmuel were his teacher because Shmuel was much greater than him in Torah matters. bAnd when they would sittogether bin judgment, Shmuel would sit before Mar Ukva at a distance of four cubitsbecause Mar Ukva was the Exilarch and the chief judge. bBut they would lower a place for Mar Ukva in the mattingupon which he sat, band he would sit on it so that he could hearShmuel’s bwordsof Torah even when they were engaged in judgment., bEvery day, Mar Ukva would accompany Shmuel to his lodgings,in the manner that a student would show honor toward his teacher. bOne day,Mar Ukva bwasso heavily bpreoccupied with a casethat had been brought before him for judgment that he did not realize that bShmuel was walking behind himto show him respect due to his position as the Exilarch. bWhenMar Ukva breached his home,Shmuel bsaid to him: Is it not enough for youthat I accompanied you until here? bRelease me, Master, from my obligation,so that I may return home. Mar Ukva bunderstood thatShmuel bhad taken the matter to heartand was insulted. Therefore, bhe conductedhimself as if he had been badmonished, for one dayas a self-imposed punishment.,It was related that ba certain woman was sitting alongside a pathwith bher leg extendedwhile bshe was sifting barley. A Torah scholar passedby her on this path, bbut she did not yield to himand move her leg to make room for him. bHe said: How rude is that woman!The woman bcame before Rav Naḥmanto ask if this statement should be deemed as excommunication. bHe said to her: Did you hearthe word bexcommunicationexplicitly issue bfrom his mouth? She said to him: No. He said to her:If this is the case, then bgo and observe an admonition for one day,as it appears that the Torah scholar sought only to admonish you.,§ bZutra bar Toviyya wasonce breading the portionof the Bible bbefore Rav Yehuda. When he reached the verse: “Now these are the last words of David”(II Samuel 23:1), Zutra bar Toviyya bsaid toRav Yehuda: If it is written that these are the blastof David’s words, bby inference there are firstwords as well. If this is the case, bwhat are these firstwords of David? Prior to this, it mentions only David’s song, but not his words.,Rav Yehuda bremained silent and said nothing to him.Zutra bar Toviyya thought that Rav Yehuda did not hear what he had said, so he bthen said to hima second time: If it is written that these are the blastof David’s words, bby inference there are firstwords as well. If this is the case, bwhat are these firstwords of David? bHe said to him: What do you think?Do you think that anyone bwho does not know the meaning of this verse is not a great man?Why are you stressing the fact that I do not know the answer to your question? Zutra bar Toviyya bunderstood thatRav Yehuda bhad taken the matter to heartand was insulted. Therefore, bhe conductedhimself as if had been badmonished for one dayas a self-imposed punishment.,The Gemara asks: bButnow bthat we have cometo discuss this issue, since the verse mentions David’s blastwords, bby inference there arealso bfirstwords. bWhatthen bare these firstwords of David? The Gemara answers: The first words are: b“And David spoke to the Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord delivered him out of the hand of his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul”(II Samuel 22:1), as that song is also referred to as words.,The Gemara elaborates: bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, said to David: David, do you recite a song over the fall of Saul? Had you been Saul and he were David,then bI would have destroyed many Davids before him.Although I decreed that Saul’s kingdom would not continue, as an individual he was far greater and more important than you.,The response to this admonishment bisfound in the verse, bas it is written: “Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord, concerning the words of Cush the Benjaminite”(Psalms 7:1). bIs Cush his name? Saul is his name. Rather,this is a designation that indicates: bJust as a Cushite,a native of the ancient kingdom of Cush in eastern Africa, bis distinguished by hisdark bskin, so too, Saul was distinguished by his actions,as he was absolutely righteous and performed many good deeds. Therefore, David uses the word ishiggaionas an allusion to the error [ ishegia /i] that he had made when he sang a song of praise over Saul’s downfall.,The Gemara notes: bSimilarly, you can explainthe verse: “And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses bdue to the Cushite woman whom he had married,for he had taken a Cushite woman” (Numbers 12:1). bBut is her name Cushite? Zipporah is her name. Rather, just as a Cushite is distinguished by hisdark bskin, so too, Zipporah was distinguished by her actions.The Gemara continues: bSimilarly, you can explainthe verse: b“Now when Ebed-Melech the Cushite heard”(Jeremiah 38:7). bIs his name Cushite? Zedekiah is his name. Rather, just as a Cushite is distinguished by hisdark bskin, so too, Zedekiah was distinguished by hisrighteous bactions. /b, bSimilarly, you can explainthe verse: b“Are you not as much Mine as the children of the Cushites, O children of Israel?”(Amos 9:7). bIs their name Cushite? Israel is their name. Rather, just as a Cushite is distinguished by hisdark bskin, so too, the Jewish people are distinguished by their actions,and they are different bfrom all theother bnations. /b,§ Having mentioned the last words of David, the Gemara continues to explain other expressions in that passage. bRabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “The saying of David, son of Yishai, and the saying of the man who was raised up on high [ ial]”(II Samuel 23:1)? It means as follows: bThe saying of David, son of Yishai, who raised the yoke of [ iulla /i] repentance,as through his actions he taught the power of repentance. The word ial /i, on high, and the word iullaare comprised of the same consots in Hebrew.,The passage continues: b“The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me, He that rules over men must be righteous, ruling in the fear of God”(II Samuel 23:3). The Gemara asks: bWhat isthis verse bsaying?What does it mean? bRabbi Abbahu said: This is whatthe verse bis saying: The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me:Although bI rule over man, who rules over Me?It is ba righteous person.How is it possible to say that a righteous person rules over God, as it were? bAs I,God, bissue a decreeand the righteous person bnullifies it. /b,Similarly, the verse states there: b“These are the names of David’s warriors; Josheb-Basshebetha Tahchemonite, chief of the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite; he raised his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time” (II Samuel 23:8). The Gemara asks: bWhat isthis verse bsaying? Rabbi Abbahu said: This is whatthe verse bis saying: These are the names of the mighty actions of David.These expressions should not be read as names of people but instead as descriptions of David’s good deeds., bJosheb-Basshebeth [ iyoshev bashevet /i]indicates that bwhenDavid bwould sit [ iyoshev /i] in the study hall, he would not sit upon pillows and cushions,as an important person ordinarily would. bRather,he would sit bon the groundlike one of the students. bFor as long asDavid’s bteacher, Ira the Jairite, was alive,Ira bwould teach the Sageswhile sitting bon pillows and cushions. WhenIra bpassed away, David would teach the Sages, and hedid this while bsitting on the ground. They said to him: Master,you bshould sit upon pillows and blankets. He did not accepttheir suggestions, since in his humility he did not wish to appear as the teacher of the Jewish people.,In this verse, David is described as b“a Tahchemonite [ itaḥkemoni /i].” Rav said: The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to him: Since you have humbled yourself, be younow blike Me [ itehe kamoni /i].How so? bAs I issue a decree, and you,owing to your righteousness, bmay nullify it. /b,David is also described here as b“chief of the captains [ irosh hashalishim /i]”because God said to him: bYou will be the head [ irosh /i] of the three [ isheloshet /i] Patriarchs. “The same was Adino the Eznite”;this alludes to the fact that bwhenDavid bwould sit and occupy himself with Torah, he would make himself soft [ ime’aden /i] as a worm, and when he would go out to war, he would make himself hardand strong bas a tree [ ietz /i]. /b,The expression: b“Against eight hundred people, which he slew at one time,”means bthat he would throw an arrowin the air bandwith it bkill eight hundred people at one time. AndDavid bwould sigh over the two hundredwho were missing from fulfillment of the Torah’s promise, bas it is written: “How should one man chase a thousand”(Deuteronomy 32:30)., bA Divine Voice issued forth and saidby way of explanation as to why the promise was not entirely fulfilled: “Because David did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, and turned not aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, bsave only the matter of Uriah the Hittite”(I Kings 15:5). Had David not committed this sin, then all of the promises mentioned in the Torah would have been fulfilled in their entirety through him.,The Gemara returns to the ihalakhotof ostracism and mentions that bRabbi Tanḥum, son of Rabbi Ḥiyya, of the village of Akko, saidthat bRabbi Ya’akov bar Aḥa saidthat bRabbi Simlai said, andsome bsaythat this tradition was transmitted in the following manner: bRabbi Tanḥum saidthat bRav Huna said, andothers bsaythat bRav Huna himselfmade this statement without the chain of transmission: |
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20. Babylonian Talmud, Pesahim, 119b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 119b. לכפול יכפול לפשוט יפשוט לברך אחריו יברך הכל כמנהג המדינה אמר אביי לא שנו אלא לאחריו אבל לפניו [מצוה] לברך דא"ר יהודה אמר שמואל כל המצות מברך עליהן עובר לעשייתן,מאי משמע דהאי עובר לישנא דאקדומי הוא א"ר נחמן בר יצחק דכתיב (שמואל ב יח, כג) וירץ אחימעץ דרך הככר ויעבור את הכושי אביי אמר מהכא (בראשית לג, ג) והוא עבר לפניהם איכא דאמרי מהכא (מיכה ב, יג) ויעבור מלכם לפניהם וה' בראשם,תניא רבי כופל בה דברים רבי אלעזר בן פרטא מוסיף בה דברים מאי מוסיף אמר אביי מוסיף לכפול מאודך למטה,דרש רב עוירא זימנין א"ל משמיה דרב וזימנין א"ל משמיה דרב (אשי) מאי דכתיב (בראשית כא, ח) ויגדל הילד ויגמל עתיד הקב"ה לעשות סעודה לצדיקים ביום שיגמל חסדו לזרעו של יצחק לאחר שאוכלין ושותין נותנין לו לאברהם אבינו כוס של ברכה לברך,ואומר להן איני מברך שיצא ממני ישמעאל אומר לו ליצחק טול וברך אומר להן איני מברך שיצא ממני עשו אומר לו ליעקב טול וברך אומר להם איני מברך שנאשתי שתי אחיות בחייהן שעתידה תורה לאוסרן עלי,אומר לו למשה טול וברך אומר להם איני מברך שלא זכיתי ליכנס לארץ ישראל לא בחיי ולא במותי אומר לו ליהושע טול וברך אומר להן איני מברך שלא זכיתי לבן דכתיב יהושע בן נון (דברי הימים א ז, כז) נון בנו יהושע בנו,אומר לו לדוד טול וברך אומר להן אני אברך ולי נאה לברך שנאמר (תהלים קטז, יג) כוס ישועות אשא ובשם ה' אקרא:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big מאי אפיקומן אמר רב שלא יעקרו מחבורה לחבורה,ושמואל אמר כגון אורדילאי לי וגוזלייא לאבא ורב חנינא בר שילא ורבי יוחנן (אמר) כגון תמרים קליות ואגוזים תניא כוותיה דרבי יוחנן אין מפטירין אחר הפסח כגון תמרים קליות ואגוזים,אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל אין מפטירין אחר מצה אפיקומן תנן אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן אחר הפסח הוא דלא אבל לאחר מצה מפטירין,לא מיבעיא קאמר לא מיבעיא אחר מצה דלא נפיש טעמייהו אבל לאחר הפסח דנפיש טעמיה ולא מצי עבוריה לית לן בה קמשמע לן,נימא מסייע ליה הסופגנין והדובשנין והאיסקריטין אדם ממלא כריסו מהן ובלבד שיאכל כזית מצה באחרונה באחרונה אין | 119b. bto doublecertain verses in ihallel /i, bone doubles themand reads them twice. In a place where the custom is to recite them bsimply,i.e., only once, one recites them bsimply.In a place where it is customary bto recite a blessing after ihallel /i, one should brecite a blessing. Everything is in accordance with theregional bcustom. Abaye said: They taughtthat it depends on the local custom bonlywith regard to the blessing bafter ihallel /i; bhowever,in all places it is ba mitzva to recite a blessing before ihallel /i. bAs Rav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said:With regard to ball the mitzvot, one recites a blessing over them prior to their performance. /b,The Gemara asks: bFrom where may it be inferred thatthe word ioveris a formulationthat means bbeforean action is performed? bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said thatthis is bas it is written: “And Ahimaaz ran by way of the square and he passed [ ivaya’avor /i] the Kushite”(II Samuel 18:23), i.e., Ahimaaz overtook the Kushite. bAbaye saidthat it is derived bfrom here: “And he passed [ iavar /i] before them”(Genesis 33:3). bSome saythat the proof is bfrom here: “And their king shall pass on [ ivaya’avor /i] before them, and God at their head”(Micah 2:13)., bIt was taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bdoublescertain bmatters in ihallel /i. bRabbi Elazar ben Perata added matters to ihallel /i. The Gemara asks: bWhatdid he badd?Certainly this cannot mean that Rabbi Elazar ben Perata added statements of his own to ihallel /i. bAbaye said:He badded repetitions,i.e., he repeated other verses, bfrom “I will give thanks to You” and onward.From that point on, he repeated each verse.,In connection to its discussion of ihallel /i, the Gemara cites a statement that bRav Avira taught. Sometimes he saidthis exposition bciting Rav Ami, and sometimes he saidit bciting Rav Asi: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “And the child grew and was weaned [ ivayiggamal /i],and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned” (Genesis 21:8)? bIn the future, the Holy One, Blessed be He, will prepare a feast for the righteous on the day that He extends [ isheyigmol /i] His mercy to the descendants of Isaac. After they eat and drink,the celebrants will bgive Abraham our father a cup of blessing to recite the blessing,as he is the first of our forefathers., bAndAbraham will bsay to them: I will not recite the blessing, asI am blemished, for the wicked bIshmael came from me.Abraham will bsay to Isaac: Takethe cup band recite the blessing.Isaac will bsay to them: I will not recite the blessing, asthe wicked bEsau came from me.Isaac will bsay to Jacob: Takethe cup band recite the blessing.Jacob will bsay to them: I will not recite the blessing, as I married two sisters,Rachel and Leah, bin their lifetimes,and bin the future the Torah forbade them to me.Although at the time it was not prohibited to wed two sisters, this practice would eventually be considered a serious transgression.,Jacob will bsay to Moses: Takethe cup band recite the blessing.Moses will bsay to them: I will not recite the blessing, as I did not merit to enter Eretz Yisrael, neither in my life nor in my death.Moses will bsay to Joshua: Takethe cup band recite the blessing.Joshua will bsay to them: I will not recite the blessing, as I did not merit tohave ba son.The proof for this is bthat it is written: “Joshua the son of Nun”(Numbers 14:6), and in the genealogical list of Ephraim it states: b“Nun his son, Joshua his son”(I Chronicles 7:27). Since the verse does not mention any children of Joshua, evidently he had no sons.,Joshua will bsay to David: Takethe cup band recite the blessing.David will bsay to them: I will recite the blessing, and it is fitting for me to recite the blessing, as it is stated: “I will lift up the cup of salvation, and I will call upon the name of the Lord”(Psalms 116:13)., strongMISHNA: /strong bOne does not conclude after the Paschal lamb with an iafikoman /i. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of iafikoman /i? Rav said:It means bthata member of a group that ate the Paschal lamb together should bnot leavethat bgroup tojoin another bgroup.One who joined one group for the Paschal lamb may not leave and take food with him. According to this interpretation, iafikomanis derived from the phrase iafiku mani /i, take out the vessels. The reason for this prohibition is that people might remove the Paschal lamb to another location after they had begun to eat it elsewhere. This is prohibited, as the Paschal lamb must be eaten in a single location by one group., bAnd Shmuel said:It means that one may not eat dessert after the meal, blike mushrooms[ iurdila’ei /i] bfor me, and chicks for Abba,Rav. It was customary for them to eat delicacies after the meal. bAnd Rav Ḥanina bar Sheila and Rabbi Yoḥasay: iAfikomanrefers to foods bsuch as dates, roasted grains, and nuts,which are eaten during the meal. It bwas taughtin a ibaraita bin accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yoḥa: One does not concludeby eating bafter the Paschal lambfoods bsuch as dates, roasted grains, and nuts. /b, bRav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel saidan additional halakha: Nowadays, when we have no Paschal lamb, bone does not conclude after imatzawith an iafikoman /i.The Gemara asks: bWe learnedin the mishna that bone does not conclude after the Paschal lamb with an iafikoman /i.The Gemara infers from the mishna: It is bafter the Paschal lamb thatone may bnotconclude with an iafikoman /i; bhowever, after imatzaonemay bconcludewith an iafikoman /i. This statement of the mishna apparently contradicts Shmuel’s ruling.,The Gemara rejects this contention: That is an incorrect inference, as the mishna is stated in the style of: Needless to say. The mishna should be understood as follows: Needless to say that one may not conclude with an iafikoman baftereating imatza /i, as the tasteof imatza bis slight.If one eats anything else afterward, the taste of the imatzawill dissipate. bHowever, after the Paschal lamb, which has a strong taste that is not easily removed,one might think that bwe have noproblem bwith it.Therefore, the mishna bteaches usthat it is prohibited to conclude with an iafikomanafter the Paschal lamb as well.,The Gemara proposes: bLet us saythat the iTosefta bsupportsShmuel’s ruling: With regard to unleavened bsponge cakes, cakes fried in oil and honey, and honey cakes, a personmay bfill his stomach with themon Passover night, bprovided that he eats an olive-bulkof imatzaafterall that food. The Gemara infers from here that if he eats the imatza bafterthose cakes, byes,this is acceptable, as the imatzais eaten last. |
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21. Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin, 93b, 107a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 107a. אוכל לחמי הגדיל עלי עקב,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב לעולם אל יביא אדם עצמו לידי נסיון שהרי דוד מלך ישראל הביא עצמו לידי נסיון ונכשל אמר לפניו רבש"ע מפני מה אומרים אלהי אברהם אלהי יצחק ואלהי יעקב ואין אומרים אלהי דוד אמר אינהו מינסו לי ואת לא מינסית לי אמר לפניו רבש"ע בחנני ונסני שנאמר (תהלים כו, ב) בחנני ה' ונסני וגו',אמר מינסנא לך ועבידנא מילתא בהדך דלדידהו לא הודעתינהו ואילו אנא קא מודענא לך דמנסינא לך בדבר ערוה מיד (שמואל ב יא, ב) ויהי לעת הערב ויקם דוד מעל משכבו וגו',אמר רב יהודה שהפך משכבו של לילה למשכבו של יום ונתעלמה ממנו הלכה אבר קטן יש באדם משביעו רעב ומרעיבו שבע,(שמואל ב יא, ב) ויתהלך על גג בית המלך וירא אשה רוחצת מעל הגג והאשה טובת מראה מאד בת שבע הוה קא חייפא רישא תותי חלתא אתא שטן אידמי ליה כציפרתא פתק ביה גירא פתקה לחלתא איגליה וחזייה,מיד (שמואל ב יא, ג) וישלח דוד וידרוש לאשה ויאמר הלא זאת בת שבע בת אליעם אשת אוריה החתי וישלח דוד מלאכים ויקחה ותבא אליו וישכב עמה והיא מתקדשת מטומאתה ותשב אל ביתה והיינו דכתיב (תהלים יז, ג) בחנת לבי פקדת לילה צרפתני בל תמצא זמותי בל יעבר פי אמר איכו זממא נפל בפומיה דמאן דסני לי ולא אמר כי הא מילתא,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (תהלים יא, א) למנצח לדוד בה' חסיתי איך תאמרו לנפשי נודי הרכם צפור אמר דוד לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע מחול לי על אותו עון שלא יאמרו הר שבכם צפור נדדתו,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (תהלים נא, ו) לך לבדך חטאתי והרע בעיניך עשיתי למען תצדק בדברך תזכה בשפטך אמר דוד לפני הקב"ה גליא וידיעא קמך דאי בעיא למכפייה ליצרי הוה כייפינא אלא אמינא דלא לימרו עבדא זכי למריה,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (תהלים לח, יח) כי אני לצלע נכון ומכאובי נגדי תמיד ראויה היתה בת שבע בת אליעם לדוד מששת ימי בראשית אלא שבאה אליו במכאוב וכן תנא דבי רבי ישמעאל ראויה היתה לדוד בת שבע בת אליעם אלא שאכלה פגה,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (תהלים לה, טו) ובצלעי שמחו ונאספו נאספו עלי נכים [ולא ידעתי] קרעו ולא דמו אמר דוד לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע גלוי וידוע לפניך שאם היו קורעין בשרי לא היה דמי שותת,ולא עוד אלא בשעה שהם עוסקין בארבע מיתות ב"ד פוסקין ממשנתן ואומרים לי דוד הבא על אשת איש מיתתו במה אמרתי להם הבא על אשת איש מיתתו בחנק ויש לו חלק לעוה"ב אבל המלבין פני חבירו ברבים אין לו חלק לעולם הבא,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב אפילו בשעת חליו של דוד קיים שמנה עשרה עונות שנאמר (תהלים ו, ז) יגעתי באנחתי אשחה בכל לילה מטתי בדמעתי ערשי אמסה ואמר רב יהודה אמר רב בקש דוד לעבוד ע"ז שנאמר (שמואל ב טו, לב) ויהי דוד בא עד הראש אשר ישתחוה שם לאלהים ואין ראש אלא ע"ז שנאמר (דניאל ב, לב) והוא צלמא רישיה די דהב טב,(שמואל ב טו, לב) והנה לקראתו חושי הארכי קרוע כתנתו ואדמה על ראשו אמר לו לדוד יאמרו מלך שכמותך יעבוד ע"ז אמר לו מלך שכמותי יהרגנו בנו מוטב יעבוד ע"ז ואל יתחלל שם שמים בפרהסיא,אמר מאי טעמא קנסיבת יפת תואר א"ל יפת תואר רחמנא שרייה א"ל לא דרשת סמוכין דסמיך ליה (דברים כא, יח) כי יהיה לאיש בן סורר ומורה כל הנושא יפת תואר יש לו בן סורר ומורה,דרש ר' דוסתאי דמן בירי למה דוד דומה לסוחר כותי אמר דוד לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע (תהלים יט, יג) שגיאות מי יבין [א"ל] שביקי לך ומנסתרות נקני שביקי לך גם מזדים חשוך עבדך שביקי לך אל ימשלו בי אז איתם דלא לישתעו בי רבנן שביקי לך,ונקיתי מפשע רב שלא יכתב סרחוני אמר לו א"א ומה יו"ד שנטלתי משרי עומד וצווח כמה שנים עד שבא יהושע והוספתי לו שנאמר (במדבר יג, טז) ויקרא משה להושע בן נון יהושע כל הפרשה כולה עאכ"ו,ונקיתי מפשע רב אמר לפניו רבש"ע מחול לי על אותו עון כולו אמר כבר עתיד שלמה בנך לומר בחכמתו (משלי ו, כז) היחתה איש אש בחיקו ובגדיו לא תשרפנה אם יהלך איש על הגחלים ורגליו לא תכוינה כן הבא על אשת רעהו לא ינקה כל הנוגע בה א"ל כל הכי נטרד ההוא גברא א"ל קבל עליך יסורין קבל עליו,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב ששה חדשים נצטרע דוד ונסתלקה הימנו שכינה ופירשו ממנו סנהדרין נצטרע דכתיב (תהלים נא, ט) תחטאני באזוב ואטהר תכבסני ומשלג אלבין נסתלקה הימנו שכינה דכתיב (תהלים נא, יד) השיבה לי ששון ישעך ורוח נדיבה תסמכני ופרשו ממנו סנהדרין דכתי' (תהלים קיט, עט) ישובו לי יראיך וגו' ששה חדשים מנלן דכתי' (מלכים א ב, יא) והימים אשר מלך דוד על ישראל ארבעים שנה | 107a. bwho did eat of my bread, has lifted his heel against me”(Psalms 41:10). Bread is a metaphor for Torah knowledge.,§ Apropos Ahithophel, the Gemara relates the events that led to his death. bRav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: A person should never bring himself toundergo ban ordeal, as David, king of Israel, brought himself toundergo ban ordeal and failed.David bsaid beforeGod: bMaster of the Universe, for whatreason bdoes one sayin prayer: bGod of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, and one does not say: God of David?God bsaidto David: bThey have undergone ordeals before Me, and you have not undergone an ordeal before Me.David bsaid before Him: Examine me and subject me to an ordeal, as it is stated: “Examine me, Lord, and subject me to an ordeal;try my kidneys and my heart” (Psalms 26:2).,God bsaidto him: bI will subject you to an ordeal, and I will perform a matter for youthat I did not perform for the Patriarchs, bas for them, I did not inform themof the nature of the ordeal, bwhile I am informing you that I will subject you to an ordeal involving a matter ofa married woman, with whom brelationsare bforbidden. Immediately,it is written: b“And it came to pass one evening that David rose from his bed”(II Samuel 11:2)., bRav Yehuda says:Once David heard the nature of his ordeal, he sought to prevent himself from experiencing lust. bHe transformed his nighttime bed into his daytime bed,i.e., he engaged in intercourse with his wives during the day, in an attempt to quell his lust. bBut a ihalakha /i,i.e., a Torah statement, bescaped him: There is a small limb in manthat he employs in sexual intercourse. If bhe starvesthe limb, and does not overindulge, it bis satiated; butif bhe satiatesthe limb and overindulges in sexual intercourse, it bis starving,and desires more. Therefore, his plan had the opposite effect.,The verse states: b“And he walked upon the roof of the king’s house; from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very fair to look upon”(II Samuel 11:2). bBathsheba was shampooing her head behind a beehive,which concealed her from sight. bSatan came and appeared toDavid bas a bird.David bshot an arrow atthe bird, the arrow bsevered the beehive,Bathsheba bwas exposed, andDavid bsaw her. /b, bImmediately,it is written: b“And David sent and inquired after the woman. And one said: Is not this Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers, and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was purified from her impurity, and then she returned to her house”(II Samuel 11:3–4). bAnd that isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “You have proved my heart; You have visited me in the night: You have tried me, but You find nothing; let no presumptuous thought pass my lips”(Psalms 17:3). David bsaid: Oh, that a muzzle would have fallen upon the mouth of the one who hates me,a euphemism for his own mouth, band I would not have said anything like thatand I would have withstood the ordeal., bRava taught: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “To the leader, of David. In the Lord I put my trust; how can you say to my soul: Flee like a bird to your mountain”(Psalms 11:1)? bDavid said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, pardon me for that sinwith Bathsheba so bthatthe wicked people bwill not say: The mountain that is among you,i.e., the luminary of the generation, David, bwas drivenfrom the world due to ba birdthat led to his transgression., bRava taught: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “Against You, only You, have I sinned, and done what is evil in Your eyes; that You are justified when You speak, and right when You judge”(Psalms 51:6)? bDavid said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: It is revealed and known before You that if I sought to suppress myevil binclination, I would have suppressed it; but I said:I will sin, so bthat they will not say a servant overcame his masterand withstood the ordeal even though God said that he would not., bRava taught: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “For I am ready to stumble [ iletzela /i] and my pain is always before me”(Psalms 38:18)? bBathsheba, daughter of Eliam, wasdesignated as bfit for David from the six days of Creation.Rava interprets that the term iletzelais referring to Eve, who was taken from the side [ itzela /i] of Adam, the first man, and explains that she was destined for him, just as Eve was destined for Adam. bBut she came to him through pain. And likewise, the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam, wasdesignated as bfit for David, but he partook of her unripe,before the appointed time. David would have ultimately married her in a permitted manner after the death of Uriah., bRava taught: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “And when I limped they rejoiced and gathered, the wretched gather themselves together against me, and those whom I know not; they tore and did not cease [ idammu /i]”(Psalms 35:15)? bDavid said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe. It is revealed and known before you that ifmy enemies bwere to tear my flesh, my blood [ idami /i] would not flow to the ground,due to excessive fasting (see II Samuel 12:16–17).,David continued: bMoreover,my enemies torment me to the extent that bat the time when they are engaged inthe public study of the ihalakhotof the bfour court-imposed death penalties they interrupt their study and say to me: David,concerning bone who engages in intercourse with a married woman, his deathis effected bwith whatform of execution? And bI said to them:Concerning bone who engages in intercourse with a married womanbefore witnesses and with forewarning, bhis death is by strangulation, and he has a share in the World-to-Come. But one who humiliates another before the multitudes has no share in the World-to-Come.The transgression of those who humiliated David is clearly more severe than the transgression of David himself., bRav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: Even during the time of his illness he fulfilledthe mitzva of bconjugal rights for eighteenwives, bas it is stated: “I am weary with my groaning; every night I speak in my bed; I melt away my couch with tears”(Psalms 6:7). Even when he was weary and groaning he still spoke in his bed, a euphemism for sexual intercourse. bAnd Rav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: David sought to engage in idol worshipduring Absalom’s coup, bas it is stated: “And it came to pass when David was at the top [ irosh /i] of the ascent, where he would bow to God”(II Samuel 15:32), band irosh /imeans bnothing other than idol worship, as it is stated: “As for that image, its head [ ireishei /i] was of fine gold”(Daniel 2:32).,It is written: b“Behold Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat rent and earth upon his head”(II Samuel 15:32). Hushai bsaid to David: Shall they say a king like you will engage in idol worship?David bsaid to him:Is it preferable that they say with regard to ba king like me,known to be righteous, that bhis son will kill him?David continued, referring to himself in third person: bIt is preferable that he shall engage in idol worship and the name of Heaven shall not be desecrated in publicthrough the murder of a righteous king in this manner.,Hushai bsaidto him: bWhat is the reasonthat byou married a beautiful woman,the mother of Absalom? David bsaid to him:With regard to ba beautiful woman, the Merciful One permittedmarrying bher.Hushai bsaid to him:But byou did not interpret the juxtaposedverses, bas juxtaposed tothe portion of the beautiful woman is the portion beginning: b“If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son”(Deuteronomy 21:18). From that juxtaposition it is derived: bAnyone who marries a beautiful woman has a stubborn and rebellious son.Therefore, even if Absalom kills you, there will be no desecration of God’s name, as the people will attribute his actions to his mother., bRabbi Dostai from Biri taught: To what is David comparable?He is comparable bto a Samaritan merchant,who incrementally lowers the price until the buyer agrees to purchase the merchandise. bDavid said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe: “Who can discern his errors”(Psalms 19:13), i.e., forgive me for the unwitting sins that I committed. God bsaid to him: They are forgiven for you.David asked more: b“Cleanse me from hidden faults”(Psalms 19:13), i.e., pardon me for transgressions that I committed in private, even if I performed them intentionally. God said to him: bThey are forgiven for you.David requested: b“Keep back your servant also from intentional sins”(Psalms 19:14). God said to him: bThey are forgiven for you.David requested: b“Let them not have dominion over me, then I shall be faultless”(Psalms 19:14), and I further request bthat the Sages will not speak of meand condemn me. God said to him: bThey are forgiven for you. /b,David requested: b“And I shall be clear from great transgression”(Psalms 19:14), meaning bthat my transgressionwith Bathsheba and Uriah bwill not be writtenin the Bible. God bsaid to him:That is bimpossible. And just asthe letter iyodthat I removed fromthe name of bSarai,wife of Abraham, when I changed her name to Sarah, was bstanding and screaming several yearsover its omission from the Bible buntil Joshua came and I addedthe iyod bto hisname, bas it is stated: “And Moses called Hosea, son of Nun, Joshua [ iYehoshua /i]”(Numbers 13:16); bthe entire portionof your transgression, which is fit to be included in the Bible, ball the more soit cannot be omitted.,The verse states: b“And I shall be clear from great transgression”(Psalms 19:14). David bsaid beforeGod: bMaster of the Universe, pardon me for that entire sin.God bsaidto him: bYour son Solomon is already destined to say with his wisdom: “Can a man take fire in his lap and his garments not be burned? Can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? So too one who lies with his neighbor’s wife; anyone who touches her shall not go unpunished”(Proverbs 6:27–29). David bsaid to Him: Will that man,David, bbe expelledfor bthat entiretransgression, with no remedy? God bsaid toDavid: bAccept upon yourself afflictions,and that will atone for your sins. bHe acceptedafflictions bupon himself. /b, bRav Yehuda saysthat bRav says:For bsix months David was afflicted with leprosy and the Divine Presence abandoned him andthe members of bthe Sanhedrin dissociatedthemselves bfrom him. He was afflicted with leprosy, as it is stated: “Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow”(Psalms 51:9), indicating that he required purification like a leper. bThe Divine Presence abandoned him, as it is stated: “Restore me to joy of Your salvation; and uphold me with a willing spirit”(Psalms 51:14). bAndthe members of bthe Sanhedrin dissociatedthemselves bfrom him, as it is stated: “Let those who fear You turn to me,and those who have known Your testimonies” (Psalms 119:79). bFrom where do wederive that this lasted for bsix months?It is derived bas it is written: “And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years; /b |
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22. Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat, 30b, 105a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 105a. ועלו בידו שתים חייב והתנן פטור לא קשיא הא דבעי זיוני הא דלא בעי זיוני:,כתב אות אחת נוטריקון רבי יהושע בן בתירה מחייב וחכמים פוטרין: א"ר יוחנן משום ר' יוסי בן זימרא מנין ללשון נוטריקון מן התורה שנא' (בראשית יז, ה) כי א"ב המו"ן גוים נתתיך אב נתתיך לאומות בחור נתתיך באומות המון חביב נתתיך באומות מלך נתתיך לאומות ותיק נתתיך באומות נאמן נתתיך לאומות,ר' יוחנן דידיה אמר (שמות כ, ב) אנכי נוטריקון אנא נפשי כתיבת יהבית רבנן אמרי אמירה נעימה כתיבה יהיבה איכא דאמרי אנכי למפרע יהיבה כתיבה נאמנין אמריה,דבי רבי נתן אמרי (במדבר כב, לב) כי יר"ט הדרך לנגדי יראה ראתה נטתה דבי רבי ישמעאל תנא (ויקרא כג, יד) כרמ"ל כר מלא רב אחא בר יעקב אמר (מלכים א ב, ח) והוא קללני קללה נמרצ"ת נוטריקון נואף הוא מואבי הוא רוצח הוא צורר הוא תועבה הוא,ר"נ בר יצחק אמר (בראשית מד, טז) מה נדבר ומה נצטד"ק נכונים אנחנו צדיקים אנחנו טהורים אנחנו דכים אנחנו קדושים אנחנו:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big הכותב ב' אותיות בשתי העלמות אחת שחרית ואחת בין הערבים ר"ג מחייב וחכמים פוטרין:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big במאי קמיפלגי ר"ג סבר אין ידיעה לחצי שיעור ורבנן סברי יש ידיעה לחצי שיעור:, br br big strongהדרן עלך הבונה /strong /big br br,מתני׳ big strongרבי /strong /big אליעזר אומר האורג שלשה חוטין בתחילה ואחת על האריג חייב וחכ"א בין בתחילה בין בסוף שיעורו ב' חוטין העושה שתי בתי נירין בנירין בקירוס בנפה בכברה ובסל חייב והתופר ב' תפירות והקורע ע"מ לתפור ב' תפירות:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big כי אתא רבי יצחק תני שתים והאנן תנן ג' לא קשיא הא באלימי הא בקטיני אמרי לה להאי גיסא ואמרי לה להאי גיסא אמרי לה להאי גיסא אלימי תלתא לא סתרי תרי סתרי קטיני תרי נמי לא סתרי ואמרי לה להאי גיסא קטיני תלתא ידיעי תרי לא ידיעי אלימי תרי נמי ידיעי,תניא האורג ג' חוטין בתחילה ואחד על האריג חייב וחכמים אומרים בין בתחילה בין בסוף שיעורן ב' חוטין ובשפה ב' חוטין ברוחב ג' בתי נירין הא למה זה דומה לאורג צלצול קטן ב' חוטין ברוחב ג' בתי נירין והאורג ג' חוטין בתחילה ואחד על האריג חייב סתמא כר"א,תניא אידך האורג ב' חוטין על הגס ועל האימרא חייב ר"א אומר אפילו אחד ובשפה שני חוטין ברוחב שלשה בתי נירין חייב הא למה זה דומה לאורג צלצול קטן שני חוטין על רוחב ג' בתי נירין והאורג ב' חוטין על הגס ועל האימרא חייב סתמא כרבנן:,העושה ב' בתי נירין כו': מאי [בנירין] אמר אביי תרתי בבתי נירא וחדא בנירא: בקירוס: מאי בקירוס אמר רב מצוביתא:,והתופר ב' תפירות: הא תנינא באבות מלאכות והתופר ב' תפירות משום דקבעי למיתנא סיפא והקורע ע"מ לתפור ב' תפירות קתני נמי התופר והקורע הא נמי תנינא באבות מלאכות אלא משום דקבעי למיתני סיפא הקורע בחמתו ועל מתו משום הכי קתני [התופר שתי תפירות]:,והקורע ע"מ לתפור שתי תפירות: היכי משכחת לה | 105a. band managedto write btwoletters, bhe is liable.The Gemara asks: bDidn’t we learnin the mishna that one is bexemptin that case? The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficult: Thatcase where we learned that he is exempt is referring to a case bwherethe letters brequire crowns. Thisis referring to a case bwhere they do not require crowns,and he is liable. If the letters already had their requisite ornamentation and an individual separated them, it is as if he wrote two letters.,We learned in the mishna If bone wrote one letteras ban abbreviation [ inotarikon /i]representing an entire word, bRabbi Yehoshua ben Beteira deemshim bliableto bring a sin-offering, band the Rabbis deemhim bexempt. Rabbi Yoḥa said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Zimra: From whereis it derived that the blanguage of abbreviationis employed bin the Torah? As it is stated:“Neither shall your name any more be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; bfor the father of a multitude of nations [ iav hamon goyim /i] have I made you”(Genesis 17:5). The verse itself contracts iav hamoninto Abraham [ iAvraham /i]. The words iav hamonthemselves are interpreted as an abbreviation: bI have made you a father [ iav /i] for the nations, I have made you chosen [ ibaḥur /i] among the nations, I have made you beloved [ iḥaviv /i] among the nations, I have made you king [ imelekh /i] for the nations, I have made you distinguished [ ivatik /i] for the nations, I have made you trusted [ ine’eman /i] for the nations. /b, bRabbi Yoḥa himself saidthat the word ianokhi /ithat begins the Ten Commandments is an babbreviationfor: bI myself wroteand bgave [ iana nafshi ketivat yehavit /i]. The Rabbis saidit is an abbreviation for: bA pleasant statement was writtenand bgiven [ iamira ne’ima ketiva yehiva /i]. Some saythe word ianokhi /ican be interpreted bbackwards: It was written, it was given, its statements are faithful [ iyehiva ketiva ne’emanim amareha /i]. /b, bThe school of Rabbi Natan saidthat there is another abbreviation in the Torah. In the verse: “And the angel of the Lord said to him: Why did you hit your donkey these three times? Behold I have come out as an adversary bbecause your way is contrary [ iyarat /i] against me”(Numbers 22:32). iYaratis an abbreviation for: The donkey bfeared [ iyare’a /i], it saw [ ira’ata /i],and bit turned aside [ inateta /i]. The school of Rabbi Yishmael taught:The word ikarmel /iin the verse: “And bread, and toasted grain flour, and toasted grain [ ikarmel /i]” (Leviticus 23:14) means: bA full kernel [ ikar maleh /i],i.e., the seed fills the stalk. bRav Aḥa bar Ya’akov saidin King David’s words: “And behold, with you is Shimi ben Gera from Benjamin, of Bahurim, bwho cursed me with a grievous [ inimretzet /i] curseon the day that I went to Mahanaim” (I Kings 2:8). The word inimretzetis an babbreviationfor: bHe is an adulterer [ inoef /i], he is a Moabite [ iMoavi /i], he is a murderer [ irotze’aḥ /i], he is an oppressor [ itzorer /i], he is an abomination [ ito’eva /i]. /b, bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak saidthat there is another abbreviation in the Bible: “And Judah said: What can we say to my master, bwhat can we speak, and how can we justify [ initztadak /i]”(Genesis 44:16), which stands for: bWe are honest [ inekhonim /i], we are righteous [ itzaddikim /i], we are pure [ itehorim /i], we are innocent [ idakkim /i], we are holy [ ikedoshim /i]. /b, strongMISHNA: /strong With regard to bone who writes two letterson Shabbat bin twoseparate blapses of awarenessseparated by a period of awareness that the day was Shabbat, writing boneletter in bthe morning and oneletter bin the afternoon, Rabban Gamliel deemshim bliableto bring a sin-offering like someone who has unintentionally performed a full-fledged prohibited labor, band the Rabbis deemhim bexempt. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara asks: With regard to bwhat do they disagree? Rabban Gamliel holds: There is no awareness for half a measure.One is not liable to bring a sacrifice for half a measure; therefore, the fact that he became aware between performance of the two halves of the prohibited labor is of no significance. His awareness does not demarcate between one act of writing a letter and the second act of writing a letter with regard to liability to bring a sin-offering. bAnd the Rabbis hold: There is awareness for half a measure.If an individual became aware of his transgression between the two parts of the prohibited labor, each individual part is independent of the other, and the two halves of the prohibited labor do not join together to create liability.,, strongMISHNA: /strong bRabbi Eliezer says: One who weaveson Shabbat is bliableto bring a sin-offering if he wove bthree threads at the beginningof something new, borif he adds bonethread bto apreexisting bwoven fabric. And the Rabbis say: Both at the beginning and at the end, its measurefor liability is btwo threads. One who makes two meshes,i.e., ties the threads of the warp, attaching them btoeither bthe inirin /ior bthe ikeiros /i,which will be explained in the Gemara, bin a winnow, sieve, or basket, is liablefor making meshes. bAnd one who sewsis liable if he sews btwo stitches. And one who tearsis liable if he tears enough fabric bin order to sew two stitchesto repair it., strongGEMARA: /strong bWhen Rabbi Yitzḥak camefrom Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, bhe taughtthat Rabbi Eliezer said: bTwothreads is the measure that determines liability for beginning a weave. The Gemara asks: bDidn’t we learn threein the mishna? The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficult,because bthissource is referring bto thickthreads and bthat sourceis referring bto thinthreads. bSome say it this way,that one is liable when weaving two thick threads, band some say it that way,that one is liable when weaving two thin threads. The Gemara elaborates: bSome say it this way:One who weaves bthickthreads, bthreethreads bwill not unravel,but btwo will unravel.With regard to bthinthreads, btwo will also not unravel. And some say it this way:One who weaves bthinthreads, bthreethreads bare conspicuous, two are not conspicuous.With regard to bthickthreads, btwo are also conspicuous. /b, bIt was taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne who weaves three threads at the beginning or onethread bonto apreexisting bwoven fabric is liable. And the Rabbis say: Both at the beginning and at the end, its measurefor liability is btwo threads. Andif one weaves ba hemwith a thread or color different from the original garment, he is liable for weaving btwo threads across a width of three meshes,i.e., three threads of the warp. Why is one liable in that case? bTo what is this similar?It is similar bto weaving a small beltin which one weaves btwo threads across a width of three meshes,the width of the belt. bAndwhen it is taught in the ibaraita /i: bOne who weaves three threads at the beginning or onethread bonto apreexisting bwoven fabric is liable,that bunattributed ibaraitais in accordance with the opinion of bRabbi Eliezer. /b, bIt was taughtin banother ibaraita /i: bOne who weaves two threads onto a largefabric bor onto the borderof a fabric alongside the woof on Shabbat bis liable. Rabbi Eliezer says:One is liable bevenif he weaves bonethread. bAnd along the edgeof the warp, one who weaves btwo threads across a width of three meshes is liable. To what is this similar?It is similar bto weaving a small beltin which one weaves btwo threads across a width of three meshes.The Gemara comments: When it was taught in the ibaraita /i: bOne who weaves two threads onto a largefabric bor onto the border is liable,that bunattributed ibaraitais in accordance with the opinion of bthe Rabbis. /b,We learned in the mishna that bone who makes two meshes,attaching them btoeither bthe inirin /ior the keiros, is liable. The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of bto the inirin /i? Abaye said:One ties btwo to the meshes,the thread of the warp, bandties bone to the crosspiece,the thread that extends from the weaving rod. We learned in the mishna that one is liable for attaching the meshes bto the ikeiros /i,and the Gemara asks: bWhat isa ikeiros /i? Rav said:It refers to bthe slips,the parts that go up and down on a stationary loom and are parallel to the pole., bAndwe also learned in the mishna that bone who sewson Shabbat is liable if he sews btwo stitches.The Gemara asks: bWealready blearned that onthe list of bprimary categories of prohibited labor: And one who sews two stitchesis liable. The Gemara answers: bSincethe mishna bwanted to teach in the latter clause: And one who tears in order to sew two stitches,it balso taughtthe ihalakhaof bone who sews. And one who tears,did bwenot balso learnthis in the mishna enumerating the list of bprimary categories of prohibited labor? Sincethe mishna bwanted to teacha new ihalakha bin the latter clause,namely: bOne who tears in his anger or for his dead relative, therefore,it also btaughtthe ihalakhaof bone who sews two stitches. /b,With regard to what we learned in the mishna: bAnd one who tears in order to sew two stitches,the Gemara asks: bWhere do you find thatcase where it is necessary to tear a garment in order to sew it? |
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23. Babylonian Talmud, Sotah, 21a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 21a. הן תהוי ארכא לשלותיך וכתיב (דניאל ד, כה) כלא מטא על נבוכדנצר מלכא וכתיב (דניאל ד, כו) לקצת ירחין תרי עשר,לעולם רבי ישמעאל ואשכח קרא דאמר ותני דכתיב (עמוס א, יא) כה אמר ה' על שלשה פשעי אדום,ומאי אע"פ שאין ראיה לדבר זכר לדבר דלמא שאני עובדי כוכבים דלא מפקיד דינא עלייהו,ויש זכות תולה ג' שנים כו' זכות דמאי אילימא זכות דתורה הא אינה מצווה ועושה היא אלא זכות דמצוה,זכות דמצוה מי מגנא כולי האי והתניא את זו דרש רבי מנחם בר יוסי (משלי ו, כג) כי נר מצוה ותורה אור תלה הכתוב את המצוה בנר ואת התורה באור את המצוה בנר לומר לך מה נר אינה מגינה אלא לפי שעה אף מצוה אינה מגינה אלא לפי שעה,ואת התורה באור לומר לך מה אור מגין לעולם אף תורה מגינה לעולם ואומר (משלי ו, כב) בהתהלכך תנחה אותך וגו' בהתהלכך תנחה אותך זה העוה"ז בשכבך תשמור עליך זו מיתה והקיצות היא תשיחך לעתיד לבא,משל לאדם שהיה מהלך באישון לילה ואפילה ומתיירא מן הקוצים ומן הפחתים ומן הברקנים ומחיה רעה ומן הליסטין ואינו יודע באיזה דרך מהלך,נזדמנה לו אבוקה של אור ניצל מן הקוצים ומן הפחתים ומן הברקנים ועדיין מתיירא מחיה רעה ומן הליסטין ואינו יודע באיזה דרך מהלך כיון שעלה עמוד השחר ניצל מחיה רעה ומן הליסטין ועדיין אינו יודע באיזה דרך מהלך הגיע לפרשת דרכים ניצל מכולם,ד"א עבירה מכבה מצוה ואין עבירה מכבה תורה שנאמר (שיר השירים ח, ז) מים רבים לא יוכלו לכבות את האהבה,א"ר יוסף מצוה בעידנא דעסיק בה מגנא ומצלא בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא תורה בין בעידנא דעסיק בה ובין בעידנא דלא עסיק בה מגנא ומצלא,מתקיף לה רבה אלא מעתה דואג ואחיתופל מי לא עסקי בתורה אמאי לא הגינה עלייהו אלא אמר רבא תורה בעידנא דעסיק בה מגנא ומצלא בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא מצוה בין בעידנא דעסיק בה בין בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא,רבינא אמר לעולם זכות תורה ודקאמרת אינה מצווה ועושה נהי דפקודי לא מפקדא באגרא דמקרין ומתניין בנייהו ונטרן להו לגברייהו עד דאתו מבי מדרשא מי לא פלגאן בהדייהו,מאי פרשת דרכים א"ר חסדא זה ת"ח ויום מיתה רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר זה ת"ח ויראת חטא מר זוטרא אמר זה ת"ח דסלקא ליה שמעתתא אליבא דהלכתא,ד"א עבירה מכבה מצוה ואין עבירה מכבה תורה א"ר יוסף דרשיה רבי מנחם בר יוסי להאי קרא כי סיני ואילמלא דרשוה דואג ואחיתופל הכי לא רדפו בתר דוד דכתיב (תהלים עא, יא) לאמר אלהים עזבו וגו',מאי דרוש (דברים כג, טו) ולא יראה בך ערות דבר וגו' והן אינן יודעין שעבירה מכבה מצוה ואין עבירה מכבה תורה,מאי (שיר השירים ח, ז) בוז יבוזו לו אמר עולא לא כשמעון אחי עזריה ולא כר' יוחנן דבי נשיאה,אלא כהלל ושבנא דכי אתא רב דימי אמר הלל ושבנא אחי הוו הלל עסק בתורה שבנא עבד עיסקא לסוף א"ל תא נערוב וליפלוג יצתה בת קול ואמרה (שיר השירים ח, ז) אם יתן איש את כל הון ביתו וגו' | 21a. band then there shall be an extension to your tranquility”(Daniel 4:24). bAnd it is written: “All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar”(Daniel 4:25), band it is writtenin the following verse that this occurred: b“At the end of twelve months”(Daniel 4:26). None of the opinions in the ibaraitaare in accordance with the mishna’s statement that merit can delay punishment for up to three years.,The Gemara answers: bActually,the mishna is in accordance with the opinion of bRabbi Yishmael,who states that merit delays punishment for one year, band he found a verse which states and repeatsthe possibility that punishment can be delayed, indicating that merit can delay punishment up to three times, bas it is written: “Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Edom,yes, but for four, I will not reverse it” (Amos 1:11). Punishment can therefore be delayed for three consecutive periods of one year.,The Gemara asks: bAnd whatdoes Rabbi Yishmael mean by stating: bAlthough there is noexplicit bproof for the conceptof merit delaying punishment for twelve months, there is ban allusion to the concept?The verses he cites state explicitly that punishment can be delayed for twelve months. The Gemara answers: The proof is not explicit, as bperhaps gentiles are different, asswift bjudgment is not administered upon themas readily as it is upon the Jewish people, with whom God is more precise in executing judgment.,§ The mishna states: bAnd there is a meritthat bdelayspunishment for bthree years.The Gemara asks: bWhich meritcan delay the punishment of a isota /i? bIf we sayit is the bmerit ofthe bTorahthat she has studied; bbuta woman who studies Torah bisone who is bnot commandedto do so band performsa mitzva, whose reward is less than that of one who is obligated? Therefore, it would be insufficient to suspend her punishment. bRather,perhaps it is the bmerit of a mitzvathat she performed.,The Gemara asks: bDoesthe bmerit of a mitzva protectone bso muchas to delay her punishment? bBut isn’t it taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbi Menaḥem bar Yosei interpreted thisverse bhomiletically: “For the mitzva is a lamp and the Torah is light”(Proverbs 6:23). bThe verse associates the mitzva with a lamp and the Torah withthe blightof the sun. bThe mitzvais associated bwith a lampin order bto say to you: Just as a lamp does not protectone by its light extensively but bonly temporarily,while the lamp is in one’s hand, bso too, a mitzva protectsone bonly temporarily,i.e., while one is performing the mitzva., bAnd the Torahis associated bwith lightin order bto say to you: Just asthe blightof the sun bprotectsone bforever, so too,the bTorahone studies bprotectsone bforever; and it statesin the previous verse with regard to the Torah: b“When you walk, it shall lead you;when you lie down, it shall watch over you; and when you awake, it shall talk with you” (Proverbs 6:22). The Gemara explains: b“When you walk, it shall lead you”; this isreferring to when one is in bthis world. “When you lie down, it shall watch over you”; this isreferring to the time of bdeath,when one lies in his grave. b“And when you awake, it shall talk with you”;this is referring bto the time to comeafter the resurrection of the dead. The Torah that one studies protects and guides him both in this world and in the next world.,This can be illustrated by ba parable,as it is comparable bto a man who is walking inthe bblackness of night and the darkness, and he is afraid of the thorns, and of the pits, and of the thistles,which he cannot see due to the darkness. bAndhe is also afraid bofthe bwild animals and of the banditsthat lurk at night, band he does not know which way he is walking. /b,If ba torch of fire comes his way,which is analogous to a mitzva, bhe is safe from the thorns and from the pits and from the thistles, but he is still afraid ofthe bwild animals and of the bandits, andstill bdoes not know which way he is walking. Once the light of dawn rises,which is analogous to Torah study, bhe is safe fromthe bwild animals and from the bandits,which no longer roam the roads, bbut he still does not know which way he is walking.If bhe arrives at a crossroadsand recognizes the way, bhe is saved from all of them. /b, bAlternatively,the verse associates the mitzva with a lamp and the Torah with the light of the sun in order to teach that ba transgression extinguishesthe merit of ba mitzvaone performed, bbut a transgression does not extinguishthe merit of the bTorahone studied, bas it is stated: “Many waters cannot extinguish the love,neither can the floods drown it” (Song of Songs 8:7). The Torah is compared to love several times in the Song of Songs. One can conclude from the ibaraitathat the merit of performing a mitzva is insufficient to suspend punishment., bRav Yosef saidthat with regard to ba mitzva, at the time when one is engaged in itsperformance it bprotectsone from misfortune band savesone from the evil inclination; bat the time when one is not engaged in itsperformance, it bprotectsone from misfortune but it bdoes not saveone from the evil inclination. With regard to bTorahstudy, bboth at the time when one is engaged in it and at the time when one is not engaged in it,it bprotectsone from misfortune band savesone from the evil inclination. Therefore, the merit of the woman’s mitzvot does protect her from misfortune and delay her punishment., bRabba objects to thisexplanation: bIf that is so,then with regard to bDoeg(see I Samuel, chapters 21–22) band Ahithophel(see II Samuel, chapter 16), who were both wise scholars despite their wickedness, bdid they not engage in thestudy of bTorah? Why didit bnot protect themfrom sinning? bRather, Rava said:With regard to bTorahstudy, bat the time when one is engaged in it, it protects and saves; at the time when one is not engaged in it, it protectsone from misfortune but bit does not saveone from the evil inclination. With regard to ba mitzva, both at the time when one is engaged in itsperformance band at the time when one is not engaged in itsperformance, bit protectsone from misfortune but it bdoes not saveone from the evil inclination., bRavina said: Actually,the merit that delays the punishment of the isotais the bmerit of Torahstudy, bandwith regard to that bwhich you say,i.e., that bshe is not commandedto do so band performsa mitzva, the mishna is not referring to the merit of her own Torah study. bGranted, she is not commandedto study Torah herself; however, bin reward for causing their sons to readthe Written Torah band to learnthe Mishna, bandfor bwaiting for their husbands until they comehome bfrom the study hall, don’t they sharethe reward bwith theirsons and husbands? Therefore, if the isotaenabled her sons and husband to study Torah, the merit of their Torah study can protect her and delay her punishment.,With regard to the aforementioned parable, the Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of the bcrossroads,which provide clarity? bRav Ḥisda says: Thisis referring to ba Torah scholar andhis bday of death.Due to his continued commitment to the Torah, when the time comes for him to die, it is clear to him that he will go to the place of his eternal reward. bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak says: This is a Torah scholarwho has also acquired bfear of sin,as his fear of sin guides him to the correct understanding of the Torah. bMar Zutra says: This is a Torah scholar who reachesconclusions from bhis discussion in accordance with the ihalakha /i,as that is an indication that he is following the right path.,The ibaraitastates: bAlternatively: A transgression extinguishesthe merit of ba mitzva, but a transgression does not extinguishthe merit of the bTorah. Rav Yosef says: Rabbi Menaḥem bar Yosei interpreted this verse asit was given on Mount bSinai, and had Doeg and Ahithophel only interpreted it in this way they would not have pursued David, as it is written:“For my enemies speak concerning bme…saying, God has forsaken him;pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver” (Psalms 71:10–11). Doeg and Ahithophel incorrectly thought that since David had sinned, his sins had extinguished his merits and God had forsaken him.,The Gemara asks: bWhatverse bdidDoeg and Ahithophel binterpretincorrectly, causing them to err? They interpreted this verse: “For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp…to give up your enemies before you… bthat He see no licentious matter in you,and turn away from you” (Deuteronomy 23:15), to indicate that God turns away from one who engaged in forbidden relations, and since David had sinned with Bathsheba God must have turned away from him. bBut they did not know that a transgression extinguishesthe merit of ba mitzva, but a transgression does not extinguishthe merit of the bTorah. /b,The Gemara interprets the continuation of the verse cited by the ibaraitawith regard to Torah study: bWhatis the meaning of: “Many waters cannot extinguish the love…if a man would give all the fortune of his house for love, bhe would utterly be condemned”(Song of Songs 8:7)? The Torah is compared to love several times in the Song of Songs. Therefore, the verse indicates that one cannot acquire a share in the reward for Torah study with money. bUlla says:The verse is bnotspeaking of individuals blike Shimon, brother of Azarya,whose brother Azarya supported him and enabled him to study Torah. bAndit is bnotspeaking of individuals blike Rabbi Yoḥa of the house of the iNasi /i,whom the iNasisupported so that he could study Torah., bRather,it is speaking of individuals blike Hillel and Shevna, as when Rav Dimi cameto Babylonia bhe said: Hillel and Shevna were brothers; Hillel engaged in Torahstudy and remained impoverished, whereas bShevna entered into abusiness bventureand became wealthy. bIn the end,Shevna bsaid toHillel: bCome, let us joinour wealth btogether and divideit between us; I will give you half of my money and you will give me half of the reward for your Torah study. In response to this request ba Divine Voice issued forth and said: “If a man would give all the fortune of his housefor love, he would utterly be condemned” (Song of Songs 8:7). |
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24. Babylonian Talmud, Yevamot, 78b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 78b. והא אמר רב כהנא לא שנו אלא רובו אבל כולו חוצץ שאני עובר דהיינו רביתיה,כי אתא רבינא א"ר יוחנן באומות הלך אחר הזכר נתגיירו הלך אחר פגום שבשניהם באומות הלך אחר הזכר כדתניא מנין לאחד מן האומות שבא על הכנענית והוליד בן שאתה רשאי לקנותו בעבד שנאמר (ויקרא כה, מה) וגם מבני התושבים הגרים עמכם מהם תקנו,יכול אפי' אחד מן הכנענים שבא על אחת מן האומות והוליד בן שאתה רשאי לקנותו בעבד ת"ל אשר הולידו בארצכם מן הנולדים בארצכם ולא מן הגרים בארצכם:,נתגיירו הלך אחר פגום שבשניהם: במאי אילימא במצרי שנשא עמונית מאי פגום שבשניהם אית בה עמוני ולא עמונית אלא בעמוני שנשא מצרית אי זכר הוי שדייה בתר עמוני אי נקבה הוי שדייה בתר מצרית:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big ממזרין ונתינין אסורין ואיסורן איסור עולם אחד זכרים ואחד נקבות:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big אמר ריש לקיש ממזרת לאחר עשרה דורות מותרת יליף עשירי עשירי מעמוני ומואבי מה להלן נקבות מותרות אף כאן נקבות מותרות,אי מה להלן מיד אף כאן מיד כי אהני גזירה שוה מעשירי ואילך,והאנן תנן ממזרים ונתינין אסורין ואיסורן איסור עולם אחד זכרים ואחד נקבות לא קשיא הא כמאן דאמר דון מינה ומינה,הא כמאן דאמר דון מינה ואוקי באתרא,שאלו את רבי אליעזר ממזרת לאחר עשרה דרי מהו אמר להם מי יתן לי דור שלישי ואטהרנו אלמא קסבר ממזרא לא חיי וכן אמר רב הונא ממזרא לא חיי,והא אנן תנן ממזרין אסורין ואיסורן איסור עולם אמר רבי זירא לדידי מפרשא לי מיניה דרב יהודה דידיע חיי דלא ידיע לא חיי דידיע ולא ידיע עד תלתא דרי חיי טפי לא חיי,ההוא דהוי בשבבותיה דר' אמי אכריז עליה דממזרא הוה בכי ואזיל אמר ליה חיים נתתי לך,אמר רב חנא בר אדא נתינים דוד גזר עליהם שנאמר (שמואל ב כא, ב) ויקרא המלך לגבעונים ויאמר אליהם והגבעונים לא מבני ישראל המה וגו',מאי טעמא גזר עלייהו דכתיב (שמואל ב כא, א) ויהי רעב בימי דוד שלש שנים שנה אחר שנה שנה ראשונה אמר להם שמא עובדי עבודת כוכבים יש בכם דכתיב (דברים יא, טז) ועבדתם אלהים אחרים והשתחויתם להם ועצר את השמים ולא יהיה מטר וגו' בדקו ולא מצאו,שניה אמר להם שמא עוברי עבירה יש בכם דכתיב (ירמיהו ג, ג) וימנעו רביבים ומלקוש לא היה ומצח אשה זונה היה לך וגו' בדקו ולא מצאו,שלישית אמר להם שמא פוסקי צדקה ברבים יש בכם ואין נותנין דכתיב (משלי כה, יד) נשיאים ורוח וגשם אין איש מתהלל במתת שקר בדקו ולא מצאו,אמר אין הדבר תלוי אלא בי מיד ויבקש דוד את פני ה' מאי היא אמר ריש לקיש ששאל באורים ותומים,מאי משמע א"ר אלעזר אתיא פני פני כתיב הכא ויבקש דוד את פני ה' וכתיב התם (במדבר כז, כא) ושאל לו במשפט האורים לפני ה',ויאמר ה' אל שאול ואל בית הדמים על אשר המית הגבעונים אל שאול שלא נספד כהלכה ואל בית הדמים על אשר המית הגבעונים וכי היכן מצינו בשאול שהמית הגבעונים אלא מתוך שהרג נוב עיר הכהנים שהיו מספיקין להם מים ומזון מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו הרגן,קא תבע אל שאול שלא נספד כהלכה וקא תבע על אשר המית הגבעונים אין דאמר ריש לקיש מאי דכתיב (צפניה ב, ג) בקשו את ה' כל ענוי ארץ אשר משפטו פעלו באשר משפטו שם פעלו,אמר דוד שאול נפקו להו | 78b. However, this is difficult, as bdidn’t Rav Kahana saythat bthey taughtthis ihalakhathat if one is not particular about the substance it is not considered an interposition bonlywhen the substance covers just ba majorityof bhisbody; bbutif it covers ball of it, it isconsidered ban interpositionby Torah law, even if he is not particular about it. The Gemara answers: bA fetus is different, as this is itsnatural manner of bgrowth.Its mother’s womb cannot be considered an interposition, as it is the fetus’ natural place of development, and therefore the fetus itself is regarded as having undergone immersion., bWhen Ravina camefrom Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, he said that bRabbi Yoḥa said:With respect to lineage, bamong theother bnationsof the world, i.e., while they are still gentiles, bfollow the male,but if they married after bthey converted, follow themore bflawedin lineage bof the two.The Gemara explains: bAmong the nations, follow the male, as it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bFrom whereis it derived bthatif bone from theother bnations had relations with a Canaanitewoman band had a sonfrom her, byou are permitted to purchase him as a slave,and he is not considered a Canaanite who may not be allowed to remain in Eretz Yisrael? bAs it is stated: “And also from the children of the strangers that dwell among you, of them may you buy,and of their families that are with you, which they have begotten in your land; and they may be your possession” (Leviticus 25:45).,One bmighthave thought that bevenif bone from the Canaanitenations bhad relations witha woman bfromone of btheother bnations and had a sonfrom her, byou are permitted to purchase him as a slave.Therefore, bthesame bverse states: “Which they have begotten in your land,”which indicates that slaves may be bought only bfrom those begotten in your land,i.e., from those whose father was a non-Canaanite and whose mother was a Canaanite. It is the way of women to remain in their own land, and so a child born in Eretz Yisrael was certainly born to a Canaanite mother. bButslaves may bnotbe bought bfrom those dwelling in your land.If a child is born to a Canaanite man and a non-Canaanite woman outside of Eretz Yisrael, and that offspring later returns to dwell in Eretz Yisrael, the offspring may not be acquired as a slave, because his lineage follows his father. He is regarded as a Canaanite, who may not be allowed to remain in Eretz Yisrael.,It was taught above in the name of Rabbi Yoḥa that if they married after bthey converted, follow the more flawedin lineage bof the two.The Gemara asks: bTo whatcircumstances is this referring? bIf we sayit is referring to ba male Egyptianconvert bwho married a female Ammoniteconvert, bwhatis the meaning of: More bflawedin lineage bof the two,in bthiscase? The ihalakhais that ban Ammoniteman is barred from entering into the congregation, bbut not an Ammonite woman,and so she is not flawed at all. bRather,it must be referring bto a male Ammoniteconvert bwho married a female Egyptianconvert. bIfthe child bis male, assign him tohis bAmmonitefather, so that he is permanently barred from entering the congregation. bIfit is ba female, assign her toher bEgyptianmother, so that she is treated like a second-generation Egyptian convert., strongMISHNA: /strong iMamzerimandthe bGibeoniteswho converted to Judaism in the days of Joshua bare prohibitedfrom entering into the congregation and marrying a woman who was born Jewish. bTheir prohibition is eternal,for all generations, and it applies to bboth males and females. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong bReish Lakish said: A imamzeret /i,a female imamzer /i, bis permitted after ten generations.Why? He bderivedthis ihalakhaby way of a verbal analogy between the word b“tenth”stated in relation bto an Ammonite and a Moabitein the verse “An Ammonite or a Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to the tenth generation shall none of them enter into the congregation of the Lord forever” (Deuteronomy 23:4), and the word b“tenth”stated in relation to a imamzerin the verse “A imamzershall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to the tenth generation shall none of his enter into the congregation of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 23:3) He explained the analogy as follows: bJust as below,with regard to an Ammonite and a Moabite, bfemales are permitted, so too here,with regard to a imamzer /i, bfemales are permitted. /b,The Gemara raises a difficulty: bOrperhaps one should say that bjust as below,with regard to an Ammonite and a Moabite, their females are permitted bimmediately, so too here,a imamzeretis permitted bimmediately.The Gemara answers: bThe verbal analogy is effectiveonly bfromthe btenthgeneration band onward. /b,The Gemara raises another difficulty: bBut didn’t we learnin the mishna that imamzerimand Gibeonites are prohibited, and their prohibition is eternalfor all generations, and it applies to bboth males and females?The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficultfor Reish Lakish, as he understands that there is a dispute in this regard: bThisopinion, that of Reish Lakish, is bin accordance withthe itanna bwho saidthat the application of a verbal analogy is extended by way of the principle: bInfer from it, andagain bfrom it.In other words, after deducing case B from case A, all of the characteristics of case A are applied to case B. In the case discussed here, although the verbal analogy comes primarily to render a imamzerpermanently forbidden, it is extended and understood to mean that a imamzeretis permitted after ten generations., bThatother opinion, i.e., the mishna, is bin accordance withthe itanna bwho saidthat the application of a verbal analogy is limited, according to the principle: bInfer from it, andthen bleave it in its place.That is to say, after the main provision of case A is applied to case B, case B is recognized as having its own character and specific rules that apply to it. Accordingly, in the case discussed here, the verbal analogy teaches one specific ihalakhathat a imamzeris prohibited permanently, but nothing else.,The Gemara relates that the students basked Rabbi Eliezer:With regard to ba imamzeretafter ten generations, what isthe ihalakha /i? bHe said to them: Who will give me a third-generation imamzerso that bI will declare him pure?The Gemara comments: bApparently he maintainsthat ba imamzerdoes not survive. iMamzerimperish at the hand of Heaven, and therefore this question is not a practical one. bAnd similarly, Rav Huna saidthat ba imamzerdoes not survive. /b,The Gemara raises a difficulty: bBut didn’t we learnin the mishna that imamzerimare prohibitedfrom entering into the congregation, band their prohibition is eternalfor all generations? How is this possible if they do not even live long enough to produce three generations? bRabbi Zeira said:This matter bwas explained to me by Rav Yehudahimself: One bwho is knownto be a imamzerwill bsurvive,as there is no concern that there will be any mingling of his seed. On the other hand, one bwho is not knownas a imamzerwill bnot survive,as he will die at the hand of Heaven so that there will be no mingling of his seed. As for one bwho is known and not known,i.e., one who is under suspicion, but it is unclear whether or not he is actually a imamzer /i, his descendants will bsurvive for three generations,but bmorethan this they will bnot survive. /b,It is related that ba certain personlived bin Rabbi Ami’s neighborhood,and following an investigation Rabbi Ami bdeclared him to be a imamzer /i.The man bwent about weepinguntil Rabbi Ami bsaid to him:You should not be upset, as now bI have given you life.As explained above, once one is publicly known as a imamzer /i, he and his descendants may survive.,§ bRav Ḥana bar Adda said:As for the bGibeonites,it was King bDavidwho bdecreed that theymay not enter into the congregation, bas it is stated: “And the king called the Gibeonites and said to them. Now the Gibeonites are not of the children of Israel,but of the remt of the Amorites” (II Samuel 21:2). This verse indicates that it was David who ruled that they are not part of the Jewish people and that they are barred from the congregation even though they converted.,The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasonthat David bdecreedthat they may not enter into the congregation? In order to answer this question, the Gemara recounts all the relevant background events. bAs it is written: “And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year”(II Samuel 21:1). In the bfirst yearDavid bsaid tothe Jewish people: bPerhaps there are idol worshippers among you,this being a sin that can lead to drought, bas it is written:“Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside, band serve other gods, and worship them;and the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, band He shut up the heaven, so that there shall be no rain,and the ground shall not yield her fruit” (Deuteronomy 11:16–17). bThey examinedthe matter bbut did not findsinners of this kind.,In the bsecondyear of the drought David bsaid to them: Perhaps there are transgressorsin sexual matters bamong you,as this too can lead to drought, bas it is written: “Therefore the showers have been withheld, and there has been no latter rain; yet you had a harlot’s forehead,you refused to be ashamed” (Jeremiah 3:3), which indicates that licentious behavior can lead to a cessation of rainfall. Again bthey examinedthe matter, bbut did not findsinners of this kind either.,In the bthirdyear bhe said to them: Perhaps there are among you those who pledgemoney bto charity in public, but do notactually bgiveany charity. bAs it is written: “As vapors and wind without rain, so is he that boasts himself of a false gift”(Proverbs 25:14), teaching that one who falsely boasts of making a gift prevents the rain from falling. Once again bthey examinedthe matter, bbut could not findsuch sinners.,Having unsuccessfully searched the Jewish people for sins that cause drought, David bsaid: The matter depends on nothing otherthan bmyself. Immediatelyit is stated: b“And David sought the presence of the Lord”(II Samuel 21:1). The Gemara asks: bWhat is this?How did David seek God? bReish Lakish said: He inquired through the iUrim VeTummim /i,the stones embedded in the High Priest’s breastplate, which served as a means of communicating with God.,The Gemara asks: bFrom wheremay it bbe inferredthat David’s seeking was by way of the iUrim VeTummim /i? bRabbi Elazar said:This is bderivedby way of a verbal analogy between the word b“presence” usedhere and the word b“presence”used elsewhere. bIt is written here: “And David sought the presence of the Lord,” and it is written there:“And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, bwho shall inquire for him by the judgment of the iUrimin the presence of the Lord”(Numbers 27:21). Consequently, the “presence of the Lord” sought by David must have involved the iUrim VeTummim /i.,The verse continues: b“And the Lord said: It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he put to death the Gibeonites”(II Samuel 21:1). The Gemara explains: b“For Saul”means that the Jewish people were punished bbecause he was not eulogized properly. “And for his bloody house”is b“because he put to death the Gibeonites.”The Gemara is puzzled by this explanation: bNow, where do we find that Saul put to death the Gibeonites?The Gemara clarifies: bRather, because he killedthe people of bNob, the city of priests, who would providethe Gibeonites bwith water and foodin exchange for their services, bthe verse ascribes to him as if hehimself had bkilled them. /b,The Gemara questions this understanding: On one hand, God bdemandsretribution bbecause Saul was not eulogized properly, whileon the other hand, bHe demandsretribution bbecauseSaul himself bput to death the Gibeonites.The Gemara answers: bYes,this is how it should be. bAs Reish Lakish said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “Seek the Lord, all the humble of the earth, that have executed [ ipa’alu /i] His justice”(Zephaniah 2:3)? bWheremention is made of the bjusticeto be carried out against a person, bhisgood bdeeds[ipa’alo/b] should be mentioned bthereas well., bDavid said:With regard to the eulogy for bSaul, there havealready bpassed /b |
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25. Pseudo Clementine Literature, Homilies, 1.19, 2.12, 2.15-2.18, 3.19-3.22, 3.24, 4.13, 7.4, 8.7, 9.16, 11.28 (3rd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
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