1. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 6.1, 9.16 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 6.1. וְזֹאת הַמִּצְוָה הַחֻקִּים וְהַמִּשְׁפָּטִים אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם לְלַמֵּד אֶתְכֶם לַעֲשׂוֹת בָּאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם עֹבְרִים שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ׃ 6.1. וְהָיָה כִּי יְבִיאֲךָ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע לַאֲבֹתֶיךָ לְאַבְרָהָם לְיִצְחָק וּלְיַעֲקֹב לָתֶת לָךְ עָרִים גְּדֹלֹת וְטֹבֹת אֲשֶׁר לֹא־בָנִיתָ׃ 9.16. וָאֵרֶא וְהִנֵּה חֲטָאתֶם לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם עֲשִׂיתֶם לָכֶם עֵגֶל מַסֵּכָה סַרְתֶּם מַהֵר מִן־הַדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּה יְהוָה אֶתְכֶם׃ | 6.1. Now this is the commandment, the statutes, and the ordices, which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it—" 9.16. And I looked, and, behold, ye had sinned against the LORD your God; ye had made you a molten calf; ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the LORD had commanded you." |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Exodus, 24.7, 24.11, 32.4 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 24.7. וַיִּקַּח סֵפֶר הַבְּרִית וַיִּקְרָא בְּאָזְנֵי הָעָם וַיֹּאמְרוּ כֹּל אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּר יְהוָה נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע׃ 24.11. וְאֶל־אֲצִילֵי בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֹא שָׁלַח יָדוֹ וַיֶּחֱזוּ אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִים וַיֹּאכְלוּ וַיִּשְׁתּוּ׃ 32.4. וַיִּקַּח מִיָּדָם וַיָּצַר אֹתוֹ בַּחֶרֶט וַיַּעֲשֵׂהוּ עֵגֶל מַסֵּכָה וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֵלֶּה אֱלֹהֶיךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר הֶעֱלוּךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם׃ | 24.7. And he took the book of the covet, and read in the hearing of the people; and they said: ‘All that the LORD hath spoken will we do, and obey.’" 24.11. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He laid not His hand; and they beheld God, and did eat and drink." 32.4. And he received it at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf; and they said: ‘This is thy god, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.’" |
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3. Hebrew Bible, Proverbs, 22.7, 24.28 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 22.7. עָשִׁיר בְּרָשִׁים יִמְשׁוֹל וְעֶבֶד לֹוֶה לְאִישׁ מַלְוֶה׃ 24.28. אַל־תְּהִי עֵד־חִנָּם בְּרֵעֶךָ וַהֲפִתִּיתָ בִּשְׂפָתֶיךָ׃ | 22.7. The rich ruleth over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender." 24.28. Be not a witness against thy neighbour without cause; And deceive not with thy lips." |
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4. Hebrew Bible, Psalms, 17.15, 81.5 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 17.15. אֲנִי בְּצֶדֶק אֶחֱזֶה פָנֶיךָ אֶשְׂבְּעָה בְהָקִיץ תְּמוּנָתֶךָ׃ 81.5. כִּי חֹק לְיִשְׂרָאֵל הוּא מִשְׁפָּט לֵאלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב׃ | 17.15. As for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness." 81.5. For it is a statute for Israel, an ordice of the God of Jacob." |
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5. Anon., Testament of Dan, 6.4 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 6.4. For he knoweth that upon the day on which Israel shall repent, the kingdom of the enemy shall be brought to an end. |
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6. Anon., Testament of Simeon, 6.3-6.4, 6.6 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 6.3. Then shall perish the seed of Canaan, And a remt shall not be unto Amalek, And all the Cappadocians shall perish 6.4. And all the Hittites shall be utterly destroyed. Then shall fail the land of Ham, And all the people shall perish. Then shall all the earth rest from trouble, And all the world under heaven from war. 6.6. And Himself save men. Then shall all the spirits of deceit be given to be trodden under foot, And men shall rule over wicked spirits. |
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7. Hebrew Bible, Daniel, 4.33, 7.28 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.33. בֵּהּ־זִמְנָא מַנְדְּעִי יְתוּב עֲלַי וְלִיקַר מַלְכוּתִי הַדְרִי וְזִוִי יְתוּב עֲלַי וְלִי הַדָּבְרַי וְרַבְרְבָנַי יְבַעוֹן וְעַל־מַלְכוּתִי הָתְקְנַת וּרְבוּ יַתִּירָה הוּסְפַת לִי׃ 7.28. עַד־כָּה סוֹפָא דִי־מִלְּתָא אֲנָה דָנִיֵּאל שַׂגִּיא רַעְיוֹנַי יְבַהֲלֻנַּנִי וְזִיוַי יִשְׁתַּנּוֹן עֲלַי וּמִלְּתָא בְּלִבִּי נִטְרֵת׃ | 4.33. At the same time mine understanding returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and my splendour returned unto me; and my ministers and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and surpassing greatness was added unto me." 7.28. Here is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my thoughts much affrighted me, and my countece was changed in me; but I kept the matter in my heart." |
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8. Anon., 2 Baruch, 78.6-78.7 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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9. Mishnah, Avot, 4.11 (1st cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)
| 4.11. Rabbi Eliezer son of Yaakov says: One who does a single good deed acquires a single defender. One who does a single sin acquires a single prosecutor. Repentance and good deeds are a shield against punishment. Rabbi Yocha the shoemaker said: Every gathering that is for the sake of Heaven will endure. And every gathering that isn't for the sake of Heven will not endure, in the end." |
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10. New Testament, Acts, 3.19-3.20 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 3.19. Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that so there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord 3.20. and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before |
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11. Tosefta, Peah, 4.21 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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12. Anon., Genesis Rabba, 19.7 (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
| 19.7. וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ אֶת קוֹל ה' אֱלֹהִים מִתְהַלֵּךְ בַּגָּן לְרוּחַ הַיּוֹם (בראשית ג, ח), אָמַר רַבִּי חַלְּפוֹן שָׁמַעְנוּ שֶׁיֵּשׁ הִלּוּךְ לַקּוֹל, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ אֶת קוֹל ה' אֱלֹהִים מִתְהַלֵּךְ בַּגָּן, וְהִלּוּךְ לָאֵשׁ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמות ט, כג): וַתִּהֲלַךְ אֵשׁ אָרְצָה, אָמַר רַבִּי אַבָּא בַּר כַּהֲנָא מְהַלֵּךְ אֵין כְּתִיב כָּאן אֶלָּא מִתְהַלֵּךְ, מְקַפֵּץ וְעוֹלֶה. עִקַּר שְׁכִינָה בַּתַּחְתּוֹנִים הָיְתָה, כֵּיוָן שֶׁחָטָא אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן נִסְתַּלְּקָה שְׁכִינָה לָרָקִיעַ הָרִאשׁוֹן, חָטָא קַיִן נִסְתַּלְּקָה לָרָקִיעַ הַשֵּׁנִי, דּוֹר אֱנוֹשׁ לַשְׁלִישִׁי, דּוֹר הַמַּבּוּל לָרְבִיעִי, דּוֹר הַפְלָגָה לַחֲמִישִׁי, סְדוֹמִיִּים לַשִּׁשִּׁי, וּמִצְרִיִּים בִּימֵי אַבְרָהָם לַשְּׁבִיעִי. וּכְנֶגְדָן עָמְדוּ שִׁבְעָה צַדִּיקִים, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן, אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיַעֲקֹב לֵוִי קְהָת עַמְרָם משֶׁה, עָמַד אַבְרָהָם וְהוֹרִידָהּ לַשִּׁשִּׁי, עָמַד יִצְחָק וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִן שִׁשִּׁי לַחֲמִישִׁי, עָמַד יַעֲקֹב וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִן הַחֲמִישִׁי לָרְבִיעִי, עָמַד לֵוִי וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִן הָרְבִיעִי לַשְּׁלִישִׁי, עָמַד קְהָת וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִן הַשְּׁלִישִׁי לַשֵּׁנִי, עָמַד עַמְרָם וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִן הַשֵּׁנִי לָרִאשׁוֹן, עָמַד משֶׁה וְהוֹרִידָהּ מִלְּמַעְלָה לְמַטָּה. אָמַר רַבִּי יִצְחָק כְּתִיב (תהלים לז, כט): צַדִּיקִים יִירְשׁוּ אָרֶץ וגו', וּרְשָׁעִים מַה יַּעֲשׂוּ פוֹרְחִים בָּאֲוִיר, אֶלָּא הָרְשָׁעִים לֹא הִשְׁכִּינוּ שְׁכִינָה בָּאָרֶץ. | 19.7. ... the root/essence of Shekhinah/God’s presence was in the lower ones / `iqar sh’khinah batachtonim haytah." |
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13. Anon., Sifre Deuteronomy, 41 (2nd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
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14. Palestinian Talmud, Berachot, 4.1 (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
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15. Palestinian Talmud, Taanit, 2.4 (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
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16. Babylonian Talmud, Avodah Zarah, 29a, 17b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 17b. דנכיס יצריה א"ל אידך ניזיל אפיתחא דבי זונות ונכפייה ליצרין ונקבל אגרא כי מטו התם חזינהו [לזונות] איתכנעו מקמייהו,א"ל מנא לך הא א"ל (משלי ב, יא) מזמה תשמור עלך תבונה תנצרכה,א"ל רבנן לרבא מאי מזימה אילימא תורה דכתיב בה זימה ומתרגמינן עצת חטאין וכתיב (ישעיהו כח, כט) הפליא עצה הגדיל תושיה אי הכי זימה מבעי ליה ה"ק מדבר זימה תשמור עליך תורה תנצרכה,ת"ר כשנתפסו רבי אלעזר בן פרטא ורבי חנינא בן תרדיון א"ל ר' אלעזר בן פרטא לרבי חנינא בן תרדיון אשריך שנתפסת על דבר אחד אוי לי שנתפסתי על חמשה דברים,א"ל רבי חנינא אשריך שנתפסת על חמשה דברים ואתה ניצול אוי לי שנתפסתי על דבר אחד ואיני ניצול שאת עסקת בתורה ובגמילות חסדים ואני לא עסקתי אלא בתורה [בלבד],וכדרב הונא דאמר רב הונא כל העוסק בתורה בלבד דומה כמי שאין לו אלוה שנאמר (דברי הימים ב טו, ג) וימים רבים לישראל ללא אלהי אמת [וגו'] מאי ללא אלהי אמת שכל העוסק בתורה בלבד דומה כמי שאין לו אלוה,ובגמילות חסדים לא עסק והתניא רבי אליעזר בן יעקב אומר לא יתן אדם מעותיו לארנקי של צדקה אלא א"כ ממונה עליו תלמיד חכם כר' חנינא בן תרדיון הימנוה הוא דהוה מהימן מיעבד לא עבד,והתניא אמר לו מעות של פורים נתחלפו לי במעות של צדקה וחלקתים לעניים מיעבד עבד כדבעי ליה לא עבד,אתיוהו לרבי אלעזר בן פרטא אמרו מ"ט תנית ומ"ט גנבת אמר להו אי סייפא לא ספרא ואי ספרא לא סייפא ומדהא ליתא הא נמי ליתא ומ"ט קרו לך רבי רבן של תרסיים אני,אייתו ליה תרי קיבורי אמרו ליה הי דשתיא והי דערבא איתרחיש ליה ניסא אתיא זיבוריתא אותיבא על דשתיא ואתאי זיבורא ויתיב על דערבא אמר להו האי דשתיא והאי דערבא,א"ל ומ"ט לא אתית לבי אבידן אמר להו זקן הייתי ומתיירא אני שמא תרמסוני ברגליכם [אמרו] ועד האידנא כמה סבי איתרמוס אתרחיש ניסא ההוא יומא אירמס חד סבא,ומ"ט קא שבקת עבדך לחירות אמר להו לא היו דברים מעולם קם חד [מינייהו] לאסהודי ביה אתא אליהו אידמי ליה כחד מחשובי דמלכותא א"ל מדאתרחיש ליה ניסא בכולהו בהא נמי אתרחיש ליה ניסא וההוא גברא בישותיה הוא דקא אחוי,ולא אשגח ביה קם למימר להו הוה כתיבא איגרתא דהוה כתיב מחשיבי דמלכות לשדורי לבי קיסר ושדרוה על ידיה דההוא גברא אתא אליהו פתקיה ארבע מאה פרסי אזל ולא אתא,אתיוהו לרבי חנינא בן תרדיון אמרו ליה אמאי קא עסקת באורייתא אמר להו כאשר צוני ה' אלהי מיד גזרו עליו לשריפה ועל אשתו להריגה ועל בתו לישב בקובה של זונות עליו לשריפה שהיה | 17b. bas the inclinationto engage in idol worship bhas been slaughteredand the temptation to sin in this manner no longer exists. bThe other said to him: Let us go bythe path that leads to bthe entrance ofthe bbrothel and overpower our inclination, andthereby breceive a reward. When they arrived there, they sawthat bthe prostitutes yielded before their presence,i.e., they entered the building out of respect for the Sages.,One bsaid tothe other: bFrom where did you know this,that the prostitutes would retreat from us in embarrassment? bHe said to him:It is written: b“From lewdness [ imezimma /i] it shall watch over you; discernment shall guard you”(Proverbs 2:11), i.e., the Torah will serve as a safeguard against lewdness., bThe Sages said to Rava: Whatis the meaning of imezimma /i? If we saythat it is referring to the bTorahthat will guard you, bas it is written in it: “ iZimma /i”(Leviticus 18:17), band we translatethis term as: bThe counsel of [ iatzat /i] the sinners,demonstrating that izimmais referring to counsel or wisdom, bandthe term ietza bisalso bwrittenwith regard to the Torah: “This also comes forth from the Lord of hosts: bWonderful is His counsel [ ietza /i], and great is His wisdom”(Isaiah 28:29), this is difficult. The Gemara explains the difficulty: bIf so,the verse bshould havesaid: iZimma /i,and not imezimma /i. Rather, bthisis what the verse bis saying: From lewd matters [ imidevar zimma /i], it shall watch over you, the Torah shall guard you,i.e., the term discernment is a reference to the Torah.,§ The Gemara returns to its discussion of the judgments of the Sages by the Roman rulers. bThe Sages taught: When Rabbi Elazar ben Perata and Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon were arrestedby the Romans during the time of the religious persecution of the Jewish people, bRabbi Elazar ben Perata said to Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon: Fortunate are you, as you were arrested on one chargeonly, of teaching Torah publicly; bwoe is me, as I have been arrested on five charges. /b, bRabbi Ḥaninaben Teradyon bsaid to him: Fortunate are you, as you were arrested on five charges but you will be saved; woe is me, as I have been arrested on one charge, but I will not be saved.You will be saved bbecause you engaged in Torahstudy band in acts of charity, and I engaged in Torahstudy balone. /b,The Gemara comments: bAndthis is bin accordance witha statement bof Rav Huna, as Rav Huna says: Anyone who occupies himself with Torahstudy balone is considered like one who does not have a God. As it is stated: “Now for long seasons Israel was without the true God,and without a teaching priest, and without the Torah” (II Chronicles 15:3). bWhatis meant by b“without the true God”?This teaches bthat anyone who engages in Torahstudy balone is considered like one who does not havea true bGod. /b,The Gemara asks: bAndis it true that Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon bdid not engage in acts of charity? But isn’t it taughtin a ibaraitathat bRabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov says: A person should not donate his money to the charity purse [ ile’arnakei /i] unless a Torah scholar like Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon is appointedas supervisor bover it?The Gemara answers: bHe was trustedto distribute the charity with honesty and integrity, but he himself bdid not performcharitable acts.,The Gemara asks: bBut isn’t it taughtin a ibaraitathat Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon bsaid toRabbi Yosei ben Kisma: bI confusedmy own bcoinsthat I needed bforthe festivities of bPurim with coins of charity, and I distributed themall bto the poorat my own expense. How then can it be said that he never engaged in charitable acts? The Gemara responds: bHe did performacts of charity, but bhe did not perform asmany acts as bhe should have,in light of his wealth.,The Gemara returns to the description of the trial of the Sages. The Romans bbrought Rabbi Elazar ben Peratafor his trial and bsaid: What is the reasonthat byou taughtTorah, band what is the reasonthat byou stole,as these were the crimes of which he was accused. Rabbi Elazar ben Perata bsaid to them: If one is an armed robber [ isayafa /i], he is not a scholar [ isafra /i], and if one is a scholar he is not an armed robber,i.e., I am accused of two mutually exclusive crimes; band fromthe fact bthat thischaracterization bis nottrue, one may also conclude that bthatcharacterization bis also nottrue. They asked him: bButif you do not teach Torah, then bwhat is the reasonthat bthey call you rabbi?He answered: bI am the master [ irabban /i] of weavers [ itarsiyyim /i]. /b,In order to ascertain whether Rabbi Elazar ben Perata was in fact an expert weaver, bthey brought him two coilsof wool and bsaid to him: Which isthe bwarp, and which isthe bwoof?The threads used for each differ in their thickness and strength and would be immediately recognizable to an expert. bA miracle occurred,as ba female hornet cameand bsat onthe coil bof warp, and a male hornet came and sat onthe coil bof woof.Rabbi Elazar ben Perata bsaid to them: Thisis a coil bof warp, and thatis a coil bof woof.He realized that the male hornet was a sign that the coil was the woof, as the woof is threaded through the warp, while the warp, which is fixed in the loom and receives the woof, was the one on which the female hornet sat, as the female of a species receives the male.,The Romans bsaid to him: And what is the reasonthat byou did not come to the house of Abidan?This was a gathering place where debates on wisdom and faith were conducted. Rabbi Elazar ben Perata bsaid to them: I was old and fearedthat bperhaps I would be trampled under your feet,due to the huge crowds. The Romans bsaid: And until now, how many elders have been trampledthere, that you would be worried about such a possibility? The Gemara comments: bA miracle occurred,and on bthat day, one old man was trampled. /b,The Romans asked Rabbi Elazar ben Perata: bAnd what is the reasonthat byou emancipated your slave?Rabbi Elazar ben Perata bsaid to them: This matter never happened. One of them stood to testify against him,and bElijah came disguised as one of the of the Roman noblemen,and he bsaid tothat individual: bFromthe fact bthat miracles occurred forRabbi Elazar ben Perata bin everyother case, bin thisinstance bas well a miracle will occur for him, and that man,i.e., you, bisonly bdemonstrating his wickedness,since you cannot succeed in your aim and are merely showing yourself to be desperate to cause harm., bButthe man bpaid him no heed,and he bstood to sayhis testimony bto them.At that time bthere was a written letter that was composed bysome bof themost bimportant people ofthe Roman bEmpirein order bto sendit bto the Emperor’s court, and theyhad bsent it in the possession of that man,i.e., the potential witness. bElijah cameand bthrew ita distance of bfour hundred parasangs.The man bwent and did not comeback, and therefore all the charges against Rabbi Elazar ben Perata were dropped.,The Romans bbrought Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyonfor judgment, and they bsaid to him: Why did you occupy yourself with the Torah?Rabbi Ḥanina ben Teradyon bsaid to them,citing a verse: b“As the Lord my God commanded me”(Deuteronomy 4:5). bThey immediately sentenced him todeath by means of bburning, andthey sentenced bhis wife to executionby decapitation, band his daughterwas condemned bto sit in a brothel [ ikubba shel zonot /i].The Gemara explains the Divine decree that he should receive this punishment: bHewas sentenced btodeath by bburning, as he would /b |
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17. Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra, 9b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 9b. משגש ארחתיה דאימיה משמיה דר' אלעזר מאי דכתיב (ישעיהו נט, יז) וילבש צדקה כשריון לומר לך מה שריון זה כל קליפה וקליפה מצטרפת לשריון גדול אף צדקה כל פרוטה ופרוטה מצטרפת לחשבון גדול רבי חנינא אמר מהכא (ישעיהו סד, ה) וכבגד עדים כל צדקותינו מה בגד זה כל נימא ונימא מצטרפת לבגד גדול אף צדקה כל פרוטה ופרוטה מצטרפת לחשבון גדול,אמאי קרו ליה עולא משגש ארחתיה דאימיה דבעא מיניה רב אחדבוי בר אמי מרב ששת מנין למצורע בימי ספורו שמטמא אדם אמר לו הואיל ומטמא בגדים מטמא אדם,אמר ליה דילמא טומאה בחבורים שאני דהא הסיט נבילה דמטמא בגדים ואינו מטמא אדם,אמר ליה ואלא שרץ דמטמא אדם מנלן לאו משום דמטמא בגדים אמר ליה שרץ בהדיא כתיב ביה (ויקרא כב, ה) או איש אשר יגע בכל שרץ אלא שכבת זרע דמטמא אדם מנלן לאו משום דהואיל ומטמא בגדים מטמא אדם אמר ליה שכבת זרע נמי בהדיא כתיב ביה (ויקרא כב, ד) או איש לרבות את הנוגע,אהדר ליה בבדיחותא חלש דעתיה דרב ששת אישתיק רב אחדבוי בר אמי ואתיקר תלמודיה אתיא אימיה וקא בכיא קמיה צווחה צווחה ולא אשגח בה אמרה ליה חזי להני חדיי דמצית מינייהו בעא רחמי עליה ואיתסי,ודאתאן עלה מנא לן כדתניא ר"ש בן יוחי אומר נאמר כבוס בגדים בימי ספורו ונאמר כבוס בגדים בימי חלוטו מה להלן מטמא אדם אף כאן מטמא אדם,אמר רבי אלעזר גדול העושה צדקה בסתר יותר ממשה רבינו דאילו במשה רבינו כתיב (דברים ט, יט) כי יגורתי מפני האף והחמה ואילו בעושה צדקה כתיב (משלי כא, יד) מתן בסתר יכפה אף [ושחד בחיק חמה עזה] ופליגא דרבי יצחק דאמר ר' יצחק אף כופה חמה אינו כופה שנאמר ושחד בחיק חמה עזה אע"פ ששוחד בחיק חמה עזה איכא דאמרי א"ר יצחק כל דיין שנוטל שחד מביא חמה עזה לעולם [שנאמר ושחד בחיק וגו'],ואמר רבי יצחק כל הנותן פרוטה לעני מתברך בשש ברכות והמפייסו בדברים מתברך בי"א ברכות הנותן פרוטה לעני מתברך בשש ברכות דכתיב (ישעיהו נח, ז) הלא פרוש וגו' ועניים מרודים תביא בית וגו' כי תראה ערום וגו',והמפייסו בדברים מתברך באחת עשרה ברכות שנאמר (ישעיהו נח, י) ותפק לרעב נפשך ונפש נענה תשביע וזרח בחשך אורך ואפלתך כצהרים ונחך ה' תמיד והשביע בצחצחות נפשך וגו' ובנו ממך חרבות עולם מוסדי דור ודור תקומם וגו',ואמר רבי יצחק מאי דכתיב (משלי כא, כא) רודף צדקה וחסד ימצא חיים צדקה וכבוד משום דרודף צדקה ימצא צדקה אלא לומר לך כל הרודף אחר צדקה הקדוש ברוך הוא ממציא לו מעות ועושה בהן צדקה,רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר הקדוש ברוך הוא ממציא לו בני אדם המהוגנים לעשות להן צדקה כדי לקבל עליהם שכרו לאפוקי מאי לאפוקי מדדרש רבה דדרש רבה מאי דכתיב (ירמיהו יח, כג) ויהיו מוכשלים לפניך בעת אפך עשה בהם אמר ירמיה לפני הקדוש ברוך הוא רבונו של עולם [אפילו] בשעה שכופין את יצרן ומבקשין לעשות צדקה לפניך הכשילם בבני אדם שאינן מהוגנין כדי שלא יקבלו עליהן שכר,רבי יהושע בן לוי אמר כל הרגיל לעשות צדקה זוכה הויין לו בנים בעלי חכמה בעלי עושר בעלי אגדה בעלי חכמה דכתיב | 9b. bwho perverted the ways of his mother.He said bin the name of Rabbi Elazar: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “And He donned charity like a coat of mail”(Isaiah 59:17)? This verse serves bto tell youthat bjust aswith regard to bthis coat of mail, each and every scaleof which it is fashioned bcombines toform bone large coat of mail, so toowith regard to bcharity, each and every iperuta /ithat one gives bcombines toform ba great sum. Rabbi Ḥanina says:The same idea is derived bfrom here,as it is stated: b“And all our charity is as a polluted garment”(Isaiah 64:5). bJust aswith regard to bthis garment, each and every threadin it bcombines toform bone large garment, so toowith regard to bcharity, each and every iperutacombines toform ba great sum. /b,The Gemara comments: bWhy wasthis Sage bcalled the infant who perverted the ways of his mother?It was because of the following incident: bRav Aḥadvoi bar Ami asked Rav Sheshet: From whereis it derived bthat a leper renders a person impurethrough contact bduring his days of counting,i.e., during the seven days that the leper must count from the start of his purification process, when he brings his birds, until he completes that process with the bringing of his sacrifices? Rav Sheshet bsaid to him: Since he rendershis bgarments impure,as it states that on the seventh day of his purification he must wash his clothes (see Leviticus 14:9), bhealso brenders people impure. /b,Rav Aḥadvoi bsaid to him: Perhaps connected impurity is different,meaning perhaps he renders his garments impure because they are connected to the source of the impurity, but this does not mean that he renders impure a person whom he touches. A proof for this distinction may be brought from the fact bthatif bone moves an animal carcass,an action that renders him impure even if there was no actual contact with the carcass, bhe rendersthe bgarmentsthat he is wearing bimpure but does not renderanother bperson impure. /b,Rav Sheshet bsaid to him: But from where do wederive that the carcass of ba creeping animal renders a person impure? Is it not becausewe know bthat it rendershis bgarments impure?Rav Aḥadvoi bsaid to him: It is written explicitlywith regard to the carcass of ba creeping animal: “Or a man who touches any creeping animal,whereby he may be made unclean” (Leviticus 22:5). Rav Sheshet said to him: bBut from where do wederive that bsemen renders a person impure? Is it not becausewe say that bsince it rendershis bgarments impure(see Leviticus 15:17) bitalso brenders a person impure?Rav Aḥadvoi bsaid to him: It is also written explicitlywith regard to bsemen: “Or a manfrom whom semen is expelled” (Leviticus 22:4), and the Sages expound the superfluous word “or” as serving bto includeas impure bone who touchessemen.,The Gemara relates that with each of his answers Rav Aḥadvoi bresponded toRav Sheshet bin a mocking tone,intimating that he doubted Rav Sheshet’s grasp of Torah verses. bRav Sheshet wasdeeply boffended,and as punishment, bRav Aḥadvoi bar Ami became mute and forgot his learning.Rav Aḥadvoi’s bmother came and wept beforeRav Sheshet. bShe cried and cried but he ignored her.As she had once been Rav Sheshet’s nursemaid, bshe said to him: Look at these breasts of mine from which you suckled.Upon hearing that, Rav Sheshet bprayed for mercy forRav Aḥadvoi, band he was healed.And since it was Rav Aḥadvoi whose behavior led to his mother’s acting in this manner, he was referred to as the infant who perverted his mother’s ways.,The Gemara comments: With regard to bthat which we arrived at,i.e., this particular subject, let us clarify the matter: bFrom where do wederive that a leper renders impure a person with whom he comes into contact during his days of counting? bAs it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbi Shimon bar Yoḥai says: Washing garments is stated with respect to his days of counting, and washing garments is stated with respect to his days of confirmedleprosy, after he has been declared conclusively impure by a priest. bJust as there,when he is a confirmed leper bhe renders a person impure,as is explicitly stated in the Torah, bso too here,during his days of counting bhe renders a person impure. /b,§ The Gemara resumes its discussion of the virtues of giving charity. bRabbi Elazar said: One who performsacts of bcharity in secret is greater than Moses, our teacher. Whereas with regard to Moses, our teacher, it is written: “For I was afraid of the anger and the wrath”(Deuteronomy 9:19), bwith regard to one who performsacts of bcharity it is written: “A gift in secret pacifies anger, and a present in the bosom fierce wrath”(Proverbs 21:14). The Gemara comments: bAnd thisstatement bdisagrees witha statement bof Rabbi Yitzḥak, as Rabbi Yitzḥak says:A secret gift bpacifies anger,but it bdoes not pacify wrath, as it is stated: “And a present in the bosom fierce wrath,”meaning that balthough a present is in the bosom,i.e., even if one gives charity in secret, nevertheless bfierce wrathcan still harm him. bThere arethose bwho saythat bRabbi Yitzḥak saysas follows: bAny judge who accepts a bribe brings fierce wrath upon the world, as it is stated: “And a present in the bosomfierce wrath.”, bAnd Rabbi Yitzḥak says: Anyone who gives a iperutato a poor person receives six blessings, and whoever consoles him with wordsof comfort and encouragement breceives eleven blessings.The Gemara explains: bOne who gives a iperutato a poor person receives six blessings, as it is written: “Is it not to shareyour bread with the hungry, band that you shall bring the poor that are cast out to your house? When you see the naked,that you cover him” (Isaiah 58:7). And the next verses list six blessings: “Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your health shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard. Then, shall you call, and the Lord shall answer; you shall cry, and He shall say: Here I am” (Isaiah 58:8–9)., bAnd whoever consolesa poor person bwith wordsof comfort and encouragement breceives eleven blessings, as it is stated: “And if you draw out your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall your light shine in darkness, and your gloom shall be as the noonday. And the Lord shall guide you continually, and satisfy your thirst in drought… And they that shall be of you shall build the old waste places, you shall raise up the foundations of many generations”(Isaiah 58:10–12)., bAnd Rabbi Yitzḥak says: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “He who pursues charity and mercy finds life, charity, and honor”(Proverbs 21:21)? Is this to say that bbecause one has pursued charity, hehimself bshall find charity?That is, shall the reward of one who has always given charity be that he will eventually become poor and other people will act charitably toward him? bRather,the verse serves bto tell youthat with regard to banyone who pursues charity,giving to the poor and leading others to do so, bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, furnishes him with money with which to performhis acts of bcharity. /b, bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak says: The Holy One, Blessed be He, sends him people who are deserving of charity, so that he will reaphis just breward forhelping bthem.The Gemara comments: bWhatdoes this statement serve bto exclude?It serves bto exclude Rabba’s homiletical interpretationof a different verse, bas Rabba taught: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “Let them be made to stumble before You; deal thus with them in the time of Your anger”(Jeremiah 18:23)? The prophet bJeremiah said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, even whenthose wicked men who pursued me bsubdue their inclinations and seek to performacts of bcharity before You, cause them to stumble upondishonest bpeople who are not deservingof charity, bso that they will not receive rewardfor coming to their assistance., bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says: Anyone who is accustomed to performingacts of bcharity meritsblessing; bhe will have sons who are masters of wisdom, masters of wealth, and masters of iaggada /i.The Gemara explains: bMasters of wisdom, as it is written: /b |
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18. Babylonian Talmud, Bava Qamma, 82b, 82a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 82a. והא כי אתא ר' אבין א"ר יוחנן אחד אילן הנוטה לתוך שדה חבירו ואחד אילן הסמוך למצר מביא וקורא שעל מנת כן הנחיל יהושע לישראל את הארץ,אלא מאן תנא עשרה תנאין שהתנה יהושע ר' יהושע בן לוי הוא רב גביהה מבי כתיל מתני לה בהדיא ר' תנחום ור' ברייס אמרי משום זקן אחד ומנו ר' יהושע בן לוי עשרה תנאין התנה יהושע:,עשרה תקנות תיקן עזרא שקורין במנחה בשבת וקורין בשני ובחמישי ודנין בשני ובחמישי ומכבסים בחמישי בשבת ואוכלין שום בערב שבת ושתהא אשה משכמת ואופה ושתהא אשה חוגרת בסינר ושתהא אשה חופפת וטובלת ושיהו רוכלין מחזירין בעיירות ותיקן טבילה לבעלי קריין:,שיהו קוראין במנחה בשבת משום יושבי קרנות:,ושיהו קוראין בשני ובחמישי עזרא תיקן והא מעיקרא הוה מיתקנא דתניא (שמות טו, כב) וילכו שלשת ימים במדבר ולא מצאו מים דורשי רשומות אמרו אין מים אלא תורה שנאמר (ישעיהו נה, א) הוי כל צמא לכו למים,כיון שהלכו שלשת ימים בלא תורה נלאו עמדו נביאים שביניהם ותיקנו להם שיהו קורין בשבת ומפסיקין באחד בשבת וקורין בשני ומפסיקין שלישי ורביעי וקורין בחמישי ומפסיקין ערב שבת כדי שלא ילינו ג' ימים בלא תורה,מעיקרא תקנו חד גברא תלתא פסוקי אי נמי תלתא גברי תלתא פסוקי כנגד כהנים לוים וישראלים אתא הוא תיקן תלתא גברי ועשרה פסוקי כנגד עשרה בטלנין:,ודנין בשני ובחמישי דשכיחי דאתו למקרא בסיפרא:,ושיהו מכבסין בחמישי בשבת משום כבוד שבת:,ושיהו אוכלין שום בע"ש משום עונה דכתיב (תהלים א, ג) אשר פריו יתן בעתו וא"ר יהודה ואיתימא רב נחמן ואיתימא רב כהנא ואיתימא ר' יוחנן זה המשמש מטתו מע"ש לע"ש,ת"ר חמשה דברים נאמרו בשום משביע ומשחין ומצהיל פנים ומרבה הזרע והורג כנים שבבני מעיים וי"א מכניס אהבה ומוציא את הקנאה:,ושתהא אשה משכמת ואופה כדי שתהא פת מצויה לעניים:,ושתהא אשה חוגרת בסינר משום צניעותא:,ושתהא אשה חופפת וטובלת דאורייתא היא,דתניא (ויקרא יד, ט) ורחץ את בשרו במים שלא יהא דבר חוצץ בין בשרו למים את בשרו את הטפל לבשרו ומאי ניהו שער,אמרי דאורייתא לעיוני דלמא מיקטר אי נמי מאוס מידי משום חציצה | 82a. The Gemara further questions the number of Joshua’s stipulations: bBut when Rabbi Avin camefrom Eretz Yisrael he said that bRabbi Yoḥa says:With regard to bboth a tree that leans into the field of another and a tree that is close to a boundarywith another field, the owner of the tree bbringsthe first fruits of the tree band recitesthe accompanying declaration, as described in Deuteronomy 26:5–10, basit was bon this conditionthat bJoshua apportioned EretzYisrael bto the Jewish people.This is an additional stipulation by Joshua, which means that there are more than ten.,The Gemara answers: bRather, whois the one who btaughtthe ibaraitathat deals with the bten conditions that Joshua stipulated? It is Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi,an iamora /i. Therefore, Rabbi Yoḥa, another iamora /i, can disagree with it. bRav Geviha from Bei Katil teachesthis bexplicitlyin his version of the ibaraita /i: bRabbi Tanḥum and Rabbi Berayes say in the name of a certain elder, and who is thatelder? It is bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi: Joshua stipulated ten conditions. /b,§ The Sages taught that bEzrathe Scribe binstituted ten ordices:He instituted bthatcommunities breadthe Torah bon Shabbat in the afternoon; and theyalso breadthe Torah bonevery bMonday and Thursday; andthe courts convene and bjudgeevery bMonday and Thursday; and one does laundry on Thursday; and one eats garlic on Shabbat eve. AndEzra further instituted bthat a woman should rise early and bakebread on those days when she wants to bake; band that a woman should don a breechcloth; and that a woman shouldfirst bcombher hair bandonly then bimmersein a ritual bath after being ritually impure; band that peddlersof cosmetics and perfumes bshould travel around throughall bthe towns. AndEzra further binstitutedthe requirement of bimmersion for those who experienced a seminal emission. /b,The Gemara analyzes these ordices, the first of which is bthatcommunities bshall readthe Torah bon Shabbat afternoon.This Gemara explains that this ordice was instituted bdue to those who sitidly on street bcorners,who do not attend the synagogue during the week.,The Gemara discusses the second of Ezra’s ordices: bAnd that they should readthe Torah bonevery bMonday and Thursday.The Gemara asks: bDid Ezra institutethis practice? bBut it was instituted from the beginning,i.e., long before his time. bAs it is taughtin a ibaraitawith regard to the verse: “And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; band they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water”(Exodus 15:22). bThose who interpret versesmetaphorically bsaidthat bwaterhere is referring to bnothing other than Torah, as it is statedmetaphorically, concerning those who desire wisdom: b“Ho, everyone who thirsts, come for water”(Isaiah 55:1).,The ibaraitacontinues: The verse means that bsincethe Jews btraveled for three days withouthearing any bTorah they became weary,and therefore the bprophets among them arose and instituted for them that they should readfrom the Torah each bShabbat, and pauseon bSunday, and readagain on bMonday, and pauseon bTuesday and Wednesday, and readagain on bThursday, and pauseon bShabbat eve, so they would not tarry three days withouthearing the bTorah.Evidently this practice predates Ezra.,The Gemara answers: bInitially they institutedthat bone manread bthree verses;or balternatively,that bthree menread bthree verses.Either way, the number three bcorresponds tothe three types of Jews: bPriests, Levites, and Israelites.Ezra later bcameand binstitutedthat bthree menalways read, bandthat bten versesaltogether be read by them, bcorresponding to the ten idlersin a city, i.e., the ten men who are paid to spend their time dealing with synagogue and communal matters.,The next ordice of Ezra is: bAndthe courts convene and bjudgeevery bMonday and Thursday.The Gemara explains that the reason for this ordice is bthatmany people are bfoundin a city on these days, bas they comefrom the countryside bfor the reading of theholy bbook,the Torah, which is performed on Mondays and Thursdays, as stated above.,The ibaraitateaches: bAnd that one should do laundry on Thursday.This was instituted bdue tothe need to have clean garments in bdeference to Shabbat. /b,The Gemara explains the next listed ordice: bAnd that one should eat garlic Shabbat eve.This is bdue tothe fact that garlic enhances sexual potency, and Friday night is an appropriate time for bconjugal relations. As it is writtenconcerning the righteous: “And he shall be like a tree planted by streams of water, bwho brings forth his fruit in his season”(Psalms 1:3); band Rabbi Yehuda says, and some sayit was bRav Naḥman, and some sayit was bRav Kahana, and some sayit was bRabbi Yoḥawho said: bThisis referring to bone who engages in sexual intercourse every Shabbat eve. /b, bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraitathat bfive matters were stated with regard to garlic: It satisfies; it warmsthe body; bit causesone’s bcountece to shine; it increasesone’s bsperm, and it kills lice that are in the intestines. And some saythat it also binstills loveinto those who eat it band removes jealousyfrom them.,The next ordice is: bAnd that a woman should rise early and bakebread on those days when she bakes. This Gemara explains that this was instituted bso that bread should be available for poor people,who go begging for bread in the mornings.,The ibaraitafurther teaches: bAnd that a woman should don a breechcloth [ isinar /i].This ordice was instituted bdue toreasons of bmodesty. /b,The ibaraitaadds: bAnd that a woman shouldfirst bcombher hair bandonly then bimmersein a ritual bath. This is to ensure that there is no dirt or other substance in the hair that would invalidate the immersion. The Gemara questions this: bThis isrequired bby Torah law,Ezra did not institute this., bAs it is taughtin a ibaraita /i, concerning a verse that discusses one who must undergo ritual immersion: b“And he shall bathe his flesh [ iet besaro /i] in water”(Leviticus 14:9). This verse teaches bthat no substance should interpose between his flesh and the water.When the verse states this in the expanded form of b“ iethis flesh,”using the term “ iet /i,” this teaches that the water must come into contact even with bthat which is subordinate to his flesh. And what is that?It is one’s bhair.Accordingly, the Torah itself states that there may not be any interposing substance in the hair at the time of immersion. What, then, did Ezra add?,The Sages bsayin response: bBy Torah lawone is required bto inspecthis or her hair before immersion, as bperhapssome hairs are bknottedtogether, preventing contact with water at that spot, borperhaps there is some brepulsive substancein his hair. One must perform this inspection bbecausethese would constitute ban interposition. /b |
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19. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot, 12b, 17a, 27a, 43b, 51a, 55a, 56b, 57b, 10b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 10b. א"ר חנן אפי' בעל החלומות אומר לו לאדם למחר הוא מת אל ימנע עצמו מן הרחמים שנאמר (קהלת ה, ו) כי ברוב חלומות והבלים ודברים הרבה כי את האלהים ירא,מיד (ישעיהו לח, ב) ויסב חזקיהו פניו אל הקיר ויתפלל אל ה',מאי קיר אמר רשב"ל מקירות לבו שנא' (ירמיהו ד, יט) מעי מעי אוחילה קירות לבי וגו',ר' לוי אמר על עסקי הקיר אמר לפניו רבונו של עולם ומה שונמית שלא עשתה אלא קיר אחת קטנה החיית את בנה אבי אבא שחפה את ההיכל כולו בכסף ובזהב על אחת כמה וכמה (ישעיהו לח, ג) זכר נא את אשר התהלכתי לפניך באמת ובלב שלם והטוב בעיניך עשיתי,מאי והטוב בעיניך עשיתי א"ר יהודה אמר רב שסמך גאולה לתפלה ר' לוי אמר שגנז ספר רפואות,תנו רבנן ששה דברים עשה חזקיהו המלך על ג' הודו לו ועל ג' לא הודו לו,על ג' הודו לו גנז ספר רפואות והודו לו כתת נחש הנחשת והודו לו גירר עצמות אביו על מטה של חבלים והודו לו,ועל ג' לא הודו לו סתם מי גיחון ולא הודו לו קצץ דלתות היכל ושגרם למלך אשור ולא הודו לו עבר ניסן בניסן ולא הודו לו,ומי לית ליה לחזקיהו (שמות יב, ב) החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים זה ניסן ואין אחר ניסן,אלא טעה בדשמואל דאמר שמואל אין מעברין את השנה ביום שלשים של אדר הואיל וראוי לקובעו ניסן סבר הואיל וראוי לא אמרינן:,א"ר יוחנן משום ר' יוסי בן זמרא כל התולה בזכות עצמו תולין לו בזכות אחרים וכל התולה בזכות אחרים תולין לו בזכות עצמו,משה תלה בזכות אחרים שנא' (שמות לב, יג) זכור לאברהם ליצחק ולישראל עבדיך תלו לו בזכות עצמו שנאמר (תהלים קו, כג) ויאמר להשמידם לולי משה בחירו עמד בפרץ לפניו להשיב חמתו מהשחית,חזקיהו תלה בזכות עצמו דכתיב זכר נא את אשר התהלכתי לפניך תלו לו בזכות אחרים שנא' (מלכים ב יט, לד) וגנותי אל העיר הזאת להושיעה למעני ולמען דוד עבדי והיינו דריב"ל דאמר ריב"ל מאי דכתיב (ישעיהו לח, יז) הנה לשלום מר לי מר אפי' בשעה ששיגר לו הקב"ה שלום מר הוא לו:,(מלכים ב ד, י) נעשה נא עליית קיר קטנה,רב ושמואל חד אמר עלייה פרועה היתה וקירוה וחד אמר אכסדרה גדולה היתה וחלקוה לשנים,בשלמא למ"ד אכסדרה היינו דכתיב קיר אלא למ"ד עלייה מאי קיר,שקירוה,בשלמא למ"ד עלייה היינו דכתיב עליית אלא למ"ד אכסדרה מאי עליית,מעולה שבבתים.,ונשים לו שם מטה ושולחן וכסא ומנורה,אמר אביי ואיתימא ר' יצחק הרוצה להנות יהנה כאלישע ושאינו רוצה להנות אל יהנה כשמואל הרמתי שנאמר (שמואל א ז, יז) ותשובתו הרמתה כי שם ביתו וא"ר יוחנן שכל מקום שהלך שם ביתו עמו.,(מלכים ב ד, ט) ותאמר אל אישה הנה נא ידעתי כי איש אלהים קדוש הוא א"ר יוסי בר' חנינא מכאן שהאשה מכרת באורחין יותר מן האיש,קדוש הוא מנא ידעה רב ושמואל חד אמר שלא ראתה זבוב עובר על שולחנו וחד אמר סדין של פשתן הציעה על מטתו ולא ראתה קרי עליו,קדוש הוא א"ר יוסי בר' חנינא הוא קדוש ומשרתו אינו קדוש (שנא') (מלכים ב ד, כז) ויגש גיחזי להדפה א"ר יוסי בר' חנינא שאחזה בהוד יפיה.,עובר עלינו תמיד א"ר יוסי בר' חנינא משום רבי אליעזר בן יעקב כל המארח תלמיד חכם בתוך ביתו ומהנהו מנכסיו מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו מקריב תמידין.,וא"ר יוסי בר' חנינא משום ראב"י אל יעמוד אדם במקום גבוה ויתפלל אלא במקום נמוך ויתפלל שנא' (תהלים קל, א) ממעמקים קראתיך ה',תניא נמי הכי לא יעמוד אדם לא על גבי כסא ולא ע"ג שרפרף ולא במקום גבוה ויתפלל אלא במקום נמוך ויתפלל לפי שאין גבהות לפני המקום שנאמר ממעמקים קראתיך ה' וכתיב (תהלים קב, א) תפלה לעני כי יעטוף.,וא"ר יוסי בר' חנינא משום ראב"י המתפלל צריך שיכוין את רגליו שנא' (יחזקאל א, ז) ורגליהם רגל ישרה,(א"ר יצחק א"ר יוחנן) וא"ר יוסי בר' חנינא משום ראב"י מאי דכתיב (ויקרא יט, כו) לא תאכלו על הדם לא תאכלו קודם שתתפללו על דמכם,(א"ד) א"ר יצחק א"ר יוחנן א"ר יוסי בר' חנינא משום ראב"י כל האוכל ושותה ואח"כ מתפלל עליו הכתוב אומר (מלכים א יד, ט) ואותי השלכת אחרי גויך אל תקרי גויך אלא גאיך אמר הקב"ה לאחר שנתגאה זה קבל עליו מלכות שמים:,ר' יהושע אומר עד ג' שעות: אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל הלכה כרבי יהושע:,הקורא מכאן ואילך לא הפסיד:,אמר רב חסדא אמר מר עוקבא ובלבד שלא יאמר יוצר אור,מיתיבי הקורא מכאן ואילך לא הפסיד כאדם שהוא קורא בתורה אבל מברך הוא שתים לפניה ואחת לאחריה תיובתא דרב חסדא תיובתא,איכא דאמרי אמר רב חסדא אמר מר עוקבא מאי לא הפסיד שלא הפסיד ברכות תניא נמי הכי הקורא מכאן ואילך לא הפסיד כאדם שקורא בתורה אבל מברך הוא שתים לפניה ואחת לאחריה,א"ר מני גדול הקורא ק"ש בעונתה יותר מהעוסק בתורה מדקתני הקורא מכאן ואילך לא הפסיד כאדם הקורא בתורה מכלל דקורא בעונתה עדיף:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big בית שמאי אומרים בערב כל אדם יטה ויקרא ובבקר יעמוד שנאמר (דברים ו, ז) ובשכבך ובקומך,ובית הלל אומרים כל אדם קורא כדרכו שנאמר ובלכתך בדרך,אם כן למה נאמר ובשכבך ובקומך בשעה שבני אדם שוכבים ובשעה שבני אדם עומדים,א"ר טרפון אני הייתי בא בדרך והטתי לקרות כדברי ב"ש וסכנתי בעצמי מפני הלסטים,אמרו לו כדי היית לחוב בעצמך שעברת על דברי ב"ה: | 10b. Similarly, bRabbi Ḥa said: Even if the master of dreams,in a true dream, an angel ( iMa’ayan HaBerakhot /i) btells a person that tomorrow he will die, he should not prevent himself frompraying for bmercy, as it is stated: “For in the multitude of dreams and vanities there are many words; but fear God”(Ecclesiastes 5:6). Although the dream may seem real to him, that is not necessarily the case, and one must place his trust in God.,Having heard Isaiah’s harsh prophecy, bimmediately “Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall and prayed to the Lord”(Isaiah 38:2).,The Gemara asks: bWhat ismeant by the word b“wall [ ikir /i]”in this context? Why did Hezekiah turn his face to a wall? bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish said:This symbolically alludes to the fact that Hezekiah prayed to God bfrom the chambers [ ikirot /i] of his heart, as it is statedelsewhere: b“My anguish, my anguish, I am in pain. The chambers of my heart.My heart moans within me” (Jeremiah 4:19)., bRabbi Levi said:Hezekiah intended to evoke bmattersrelating bto a wall,and bhe said beforeGod: bMaster of the Universe, and if the woman from Shunem, who made only a single small wallon the roof for the prophet Elisha, and byou revived her son, all the more soshould you bring life to the descendant of bmy father’s father,King Solomon, bwho covered the entireTemple bSanctuary with silver and gold.In his prayer, Hezekiah said: “Please, Lord, bplease remember that I walked before You in truth, and with a complete heart, and what was good in Your eyes I did.And Hezekiah wept sore” (Isaiah 38:3).,The Gemara asks: To bwhatspecific action was he referring when he said: b“And what was good in your sight I did”?Various opinions are offered: Mentioning Hezekiah’s merits, bRav Yehuda said in the name of Rav that he juxtaposed redemption and prayerat sunrise instead of sleeping late, as was the custom of most kings ( iIyyun Ya’akov /i). bRabbi Levi said: He suppressed the Book of Remediesupon which everyone relied., bThe Sages taught: King Hezekiah performed sixinnovative bactions. With regard to threethe Sages bagreed with him, and with regard to three they did not agree with him. /b, bWith regard to threeactions the Sages bagreed with him: br bHe suppressed the Book of Remedies, and they agreed with him. br bHe ground the copper snakethrough which miracles were performed for Israel (Numbers 21:9), destroying it because it had been used in idol worship (II Kings 18:4), band they agreed with him. br bHe dragged the bones of hisevil bfather,King Ahaz, bon a bed of ropes;meaning he did not accord his father a funeral fit for a king (II Chronicles 28:27), band they agreed with him. /b,Yet, bwith regard to threeother innovations, the Sages of his generation bdid not agree with him: br bHe stopped up the waters of the Gihon,the Pool of Siloam, diverting its water into the city by means of a tunnel (II Chronicles 32:30), band they did not agree with him. br bHe cut off the doors of the Sanctuary and sent them to the king of Assyria(II Kings 18:16), band they did not agree with him. br bHe intercalated Nisan in Nisan,creating a leap year by adding an extra month during the month of Nisan. That intercalation must be performed before the end of Adar (II Chronicles 30:2).,With regard to his intercalation of Nisan, the Gemara asks: bDid Hezekiah notaccept the ihalakha /i: b“This month will be for you the first of the months;it shall be the first for you of the months of the year” (Exodus 12:2)? By inference, bthisfirst month bis Nisan, and no othermonth bis Nisan.How could Hezekiah add an additional Nisan in violation of Torah law?,The Gemara answers that the scenario was different. bRather, Hezekiah erred with regard tothe halakhic opinion ascribed in later generations to bShmuel,as bShmuel said: One may not intercalate the year on the thirtieth day of Adar, since it is fit to establish itas the New Moon of bNisan.On the thirtieth day of each month, those who witnessed the new moon would come and testify before the court, which, based on their testimony, would declare that day the first day of the next month. Therefore, one may not declare a leap year on the thirtieth day of Adar, as it could potentially become the first of Nisan. Therefore, the Sages of Hezekiah’s generation did not agree with his decision to intercalate the year on the thirtieth of Adar. Hezekiah bheldthat bwe do not say: Sincethat day bis fit to establish itas the New Moon is reason enough to refrain from intercalation of the year.,Stemming from the analysis of Hezekiah’s prayer, bRabbi Yoḥa said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Zimra: Anyone who baseshis prayer or request bupon his own merit,when God answers his prayer, bit is based upon the merit of others. And anyone whomodestly bbaseshis prayer or request bupon the merit of others,when God answers his prayer, bit is based upon his own merit. /b,The Gemara cites proof from Moses. When he prayed to God for forgiveness after the incident of the Golden Calf, bhe basedhis request bupon the merit of others, as it is stated: “Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel your servants,to whom You swore upon Yourself, and told them: I will increase your descendants like the stars of the heavens, and all of this land of which I have spoken, I will give to your descendants and they will inherit it forever” (Exodus 32:13). Yet when this story is related, God’s forgiveness of Israel bis based upon Moses’ own merit, as it is stated: “And He said He would destroy them, had Moses, His chosen, not stood before Him in the breach to turn back His destructive fury, lest He should destroy them”(Psalms 106:23)., bHezekiah,however, bbasedhis request bupon his own merit, as it is written: “Please, remember that I walked before You”(Isaiah 38:3). When God answered his prayers, bit was based upon the merit of otherswith no mention made of Hezekiah’s own merit, bas it is stated: “And I will protect this city to save it, for My sake and for the sake of David, My servant”(II Kings 19:34). bAnd that is what Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levisaid. bAs Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: What isthe meaning of bthat which is written: “Behold, for my peace I had great bitterness;but You have, in love to my soul, delivered it from the pit of corruption; for You have thrown all my sins behind Your back” (Isaiah 38:17)? This verse teaches that beven when the Holy One, Blessed be He, sent him peaceand told him that he would recover from his illness, bit was bitter for him,because God did not take his merit into consideration.,Having mentioned the chamber on the roof built for Elisha by the woman from Shunem, the Gemara now describes the entire event. The woman from Shunem suggested to her husband: b“Let us make, I pray thee, a small chamber on the roof,and let us place a bed, table, stool and candlestick for him there, and it will be, when he comes to us, that he will turn in there” (II Kings 4:10)., bRav and Shmuelargued over the meaning of small chamber. bOneof them bsaid: They had an uncovered second storyon their roof, bover which they built a ceiling;and boneof them bsaid: There was an enclosed veranda [ iakhsadra /i] and they divided it in half. /b,The Gemara comments: bGranted, according to the one who said that it was an enclosed verandawhich they divided in two, it makes sense bthatthe term bwall [ ikir /i] was written. However, according to the one who said that they had anopen bsecond story, what isthe meaning of bwall? /b,The Gemara responds: The one who said that they had an uncovered second story interprets ikirnot as wall but as ceiling meaning that they bbuilt a ceiling[ ikirui /i] over it.,On the other hand, bgranted, according to the one who said that they had anuncovered bsecond story,it makes sense bthatthe term bsecond story[ialiyat /i] was written. But according to the one who saidthat it was ban enclosed veranda, what isthe meaning of the term bsecond story? /b,The Gemara responds: The one who said that it was an enclosed veranda interprets ialiyatnot as second story, but bas the most outstanding [ ime’ula /i] of the rooms. /b,Incidental to this discussion, the Gemara analyzes the statement made by the woman from Shunem to her husband with regard to the provisions that they would place in the room for Elisha: b“And let us place a bed, table, stool and candlestick for him there.” /b, bAbaye, and some say Rabbi Yitzḥak, said:A great man bwho seeks to enjoythe contributions of those who seek to honor him bmay enjoythose gifts, bas Elishaenjoyed gifts given him by the woman from Shunem, among others. bAnd one who does not seek to enjoythese gifts bshould not enjoy them, aswas the practice of the prophet bSamuel from Rama,who would not accept gifts from anyone at all. From where do we know that this was Samuel’s custom? bAs it is stated: “And he returned to Rama, for there was his house,and there he judged Israel, and he built an altar to the Lord” (I Samuel 7:17). bAndsimilarly, bRabbi Yoḥa said: Every place whereSamuel bwent, his house was with him,so he would have everything that he needed and not be forced to benefit from public contributions. One may opt to conduct himself in accordance with either of these paths.,Regarding the woman from Shunem: b“And she said to her husband: Behold now, I perceive that he is a holy man of Godwho passes by us continually” (II Kings 4:9). bRabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said: From here,where the woman from Shunem perceived the prophet’s greatness before her husband did, derive bthat a woman recognizesthe character of her bguests more than a mandoes.,The Gemara notes that the woman from Shunem said that b“he is holy.”The Gemara asks: bFrom where did she knowthat he was holy? bRav and Shmueldisagreed over this. bOneof them bsaid: She never saw a fly pass over his table; and the other said: She spread awhite blinen sheet on his bed,and despite that even the smallest stain is visible on white linen, and nocturnal seminal emissions are not uncommon, bshe never sawthe residue of ba seminal emission on it. /b,With regard to the verse: b“He is holy,” Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said:The woman from Shunem intimated that: bHe is holy,but bhis attendant,Geihazi, bis not holy,as she saw no indication of holiness in him ( iIyyun Ya’akov /i). Here too, she correctly perceived the character of her guest, bas it islater bstated: “And Geihazi approached her to push her away [ ilehodfa /i]”(II Kings 4:27). And bRabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said: He grabbed her by the majesty of her beauty [ ihod yofya /i],meaning that when he pushed her he grabbed her breasts in a licentious manner.,With regard to the phrasing of the verse: “He is a holy man of God bwho passes by us continually,” Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov:From this verse we derive that bone who hosts a Torah scholar in his home and lets him enjoy his possessions, the verse ascribes to himcredit bas if he is sacrificing the daily [ itamid /i] offering,as the verse states: “Passes by us continually [ itamid /i].”,With regard to the ihalakhotof prayer, bRabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov: A person should not stand in a high place and pray; rather,he should stand bin a low place and pray, as it is stated: “I called to You, Lord, from the depths”(Psalms 130:1)., bThat was also taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne should neither stand upon a chair nor upon a stool, nor in a high place and pray. Rather,one should stand bin a low place and pray, for there is no haughtiness before God. As it is stated: “I called to You, Lord, from the depths” and it is written: “A prayer for the impoverished, when he is faintand pours out his complaint before God” (Psalms 102:1). It is appropriate to feel impoverished when praying and make one’s requests humbly., bAnd Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov: When praying, one should align his feetnext to each other, as a single foot, in order to model oneself after the angels, with regard to whom bit is stated: “And their feet were a straight foot”(Ezekiel 1:7)., bRabbi Yitzḥak saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa said and Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov: What isthe meaning of bthat which is written: “You shall not eat with the blood”(Leviticus 19:26)? bYou may not eat before you pray for your blood.One may not eat before he prays., bOthers saythat bRabbi Yitzḥak saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa saidthat bRabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov: One who eats and drinks and later prays, about him the verse statesthe rebuke of the prophet in the name of God: b“And Me you have cast behind your back”(I Kings 14:9). One who sees to his own bodily needs by eating and drinking before prayer casts God aside, according his arrogance and ego priority over God (Maharsha). Indeed, bdo not read your back [ igavekha /i]; rather, your pride [ ige’ekha /i]. The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: After thisone bhas become arrogantand engaged in satisfying his own needs, bheonly then baccepted upon himself the kingdom of Heaven. /b,We learned in the mishna that bRabbi Yehoshua says:One may recite the morning iShema buntil three hoursof the day. bRav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said: The ihalakhais in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yehoshua. /b,We also learned in the mishna that bone who recites iShema bfrom that time onward loses nothing;although he does not fulfill the mitzva of reciting of iShemaat its appointed time, bhe isnevertheless considered like one who reads the Torah, and is rewarded accordingly.,With regard to this ruling, bRav Ḥisda saidthat bMar Ukva said:This only applies bprovided one does not recite: Who forms light [ iyotzer or /i],or the rest of the blessings recited along with iShema /i, as they pertain only to the fulfillment of the mitzva of reciting of the morning iShema /i; after the third hour, they are inappropriate.,The Gemara braises an objection toRav Ḥisda’s statement from a ibaraita /i: bOne who recites iShema bfrom that time onward loses nothing, and is considered like one who reads Torah, but he recites two blessings beforehand and oneblessing bthereafter. /bThis directly contradicts Rav Ḥisda’s statement, and the Gemara notes: Indeed, bthe refutationof the statement bof Rav Ḥisda is aconclusive brefutation,and Rav Ḥisda’s opinion is rejected in favor of that of the ibaraita /i., bSome say that Rav Ḥisda saidthat bMar Ukva saidthe opposite: bWhat isthe meaning of: bLoses nothing,in the mishna? This means that one who recites iShemaafter the third hour bdoes not losethe opportunity to recite bthe blessingsand is permitted to recite them although the time for the recitation of iShemahas passed. bThat was also taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne who recites iShema bafter this time loses nothing, and is considered like one who reads the Torah, but he recites two blessings beforehand and one thereafter. /b,With regard to our mishna, bRabbi Mani said: Greater is one who recites iShemaat itsappropriate btime than one who engages in Torahstudy. A proof is cited based on bwhat was taughtin the mishna: bOne who recites iShema bafter this time loses nothing and isconsidered blike one who reads the Torah.This is proven bby inference,since bone who recites iShema bat itsappointed btime is greaterthan one who does not, and one who does not is equal to one who reads the Torah, when one recites iShemaat its appointed time he fulfills two mitzvot, that of Torah study and that of the recitation of iShema /i., strongMISHNA: /strong Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disputed the proper way to recite iShema /i. bBeit Shammai say:One should recite iShemain the manner indicated in the text of iShemaitself. Therefore, bin the evening every person must reclineon his side and recite iShema /i, in fulfillment of the verse: “When you lie down,” band in the morning he must standand recite iShema /i, in fulfillment of the verse: When you rise, bas it is stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise.” /b, bAnd Beit Hillel say: Every person recites iShema bas he is,and he may do so in whatever position is most comfortable for him, both day and night, bas it is stated: “And when you walk along the way,”when one is neither standing nor reclining ( iMe’iri /i)., bIf so,according to Beit Hillel, bwhy was it stated: “When you lie down, and when you rise”?This is merely to denote time; bat the time when people lie down and the time when people rise. /b,With regard to this ihalakha /i, bRabbi Tarfon said:Once, bI was coming on the roadwhen I stopped and breclined to recite iShema bin accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai.Although Rabbi Tarfon was a disciple of Beit Hillel, he thought that fulfilling the mitzva in accordance with the opinion of Beit Shammai would be a more meticulous fulfillment of the mitzva, acceptable to all opinions. Yet in so doing, bI endangered myself due to the highwaymen [ ilistim /i]who accost travelers.,The Sages bsaid to him: You deservedto be in a position where you were bliableto pay bwith your life, as you transgressed the statement of Beit Hillel.This statement will be explained in the Gemara. |
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20. Babylonian Talmud, Gittin, 70a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 70a. ענבי תאלא במים,לחזזיתא ליתי שב חיטי ארזנייתא וניקלינהו אמרא חדתא ונפיק משחא מינייהו ונישוף רב שימי בר אשי עבד ליה לההוא עובד כוכבים לדבר אחר ואיתסי,אמר שמואל האי מאן דמחו ליה באלונכי דפרסאי מיחייא לא חיי אדהכי והכי ניספו ליה בשרא שמינא אגומרי וחמרא חייא אפשר דחיי פורתא ומפקיד אביתיה,אמר רב אידי בר אבין האי מאן דבלע זיבורא מיחייא לא חיי אדהכי והכי נשקיה רביעתא דחלא שמזג אפשר דחיי פורתא ומפקיד לביתיה,א"ר יהושע בן לוי אכל בשר שור בלפת ולן בלבנה בלילי י"ד או ט"ו בתקופת תמוז אחזתו אחילו,תנא והממלא כריסו מכל דבר אחזתו אחילו אמר רב פפא אפי' מתמרי פשיטא סד"א הואיל ואמר מר תמרי משבען ומשחנן ומשלשלן ומאשרן ולא מפנקן אימא לא קמ"ל,מאי אחילו א"ר אלעזר אש של עצמות מאי אש של עצמות אמר אביי אש גרמי,מאי אסותיה אמר אביי אמרה לי אם כולהו שקייני תלתא ושבעא ותריסר והאי עד דמתסי,כולהו שקייני אליבא ריקנא והאי בתר דאכל ושתי ועייל לבית הכסא ונפיק ומשי ידיה ומייתו ליה בונא דשתיתא דטלפחי ובונא דחמרא עתיקא וניגבלינהו בהדי הדדי וניכול וניכרוך בסדיניה וניגניה וליכא דנוקמיה עד דקאי מנפשיה וכי קאי לישקליה לסדיניה מיניה ואי לא הדר עילויה,אמר ליה אליהו לר' נתן אכול שליש ושתה שליש והנח שליש לכשתכעוס תעמוד על מילואך,תני ר' חייא הרוצה שלא יבא לידי חולי מעיים יהא רגיל בטיבול קיץ וחורף סעודתך שהנאתך ממנה משוך ידך הימנה ואל תשהה עצמך בשעה שאתה צריך לנקביך,אמר מר עוקבא האי מאן דשתי טיליא חיורא אחזתו ויתק אמר רב חסדא שיתין מיני חמרא הוו מעליא דכולהו סומקא ריחתנא גריעא דכולהו טיליא חיורא,אמר רב יהודה האי מאן דיתיב בצפרני ניסן גבי נורא ושייף משחא ונפיק ויתיב בשמשא אחזתו ויתק,תנו רבנן הקיז דם ושימש מטתו הוויין לו בנים ויתקין הקיזו שניהם ושימשו הוויין להן בנים בעלי ראתן אמר רב פפא לא אמרן אלא דלא טעים מידי אבל טעים מידי לית לן בה,אמר רבה בר רב הונא בא מן הדרך ושימש מטתו הוויין לו בנים ויתקין תנו רבנן הבא מבית הכסא אל ישמש מטתו עד שישהה שיעור חצי מיל מפני ששד בית הכסא מלוה עמו ואם שימש הוויין לו בנים נכפים,תנו רבנן המשמש מטתו מעומד אוחזתו עוית מיושב אוחזתו דלריא היא מלמעלה והוא מלמטה אוחזתו דלריא,מאי דלריא אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי סם דלריא דרדרא מאי דרדרא אמר אביי מוריקא דחוחי רב פפא אליס ובלע ליה רב פפי אליס ושדי ליה,אמר אביי מי שאינו בקי בדרך ארץ ליתי ג' קפיזי קורטמי דחוחי ונידוקינהו ונישליקינהו בחמרא ונישתי אמר רבי יוחנן הן הן החזירוני לנערותי:,שלשה דברים מכחישים כחו של אדם ואלו הן פחד דרך ועון פחד דכתיב (תהלים לח, יא) לבי סחרחר עזבני כחי דרך דכתיב (תהלים קב, כד) ענה בדרך כחי עון דכתיב (תהלים לא, יא) כשל בעוני כחי:,שלשה דברים מתיזין גופו של אדם ואלו הן אכל מעומד ושתה מעומד ושימש מטתו מעומד,חמשה קרובין למיתה יותר מן החיים ואלו הן אכל ועמד שתה ועמד הקיז דם ועמד ישן ועמד שימש מטתו ועמד:,ששה העושה אותן מיד מת ואלו הן הבא בדרך ונתייגע הקיז דם ונכנס לבית המרחץ ושתה ונשתכר וישן על גבי קרקע ושימש מטתו אמר רבי יוחנן והוא שעשאן כסידרן,אמר אביי כסידרן מת שלא כסידרן חליש איני והא מעורת עבדה ליה לעבדה תלת מינייהו ומית ההוא כחוש הוה:,שמונה רובן קשה ומיעוטן יפה ואלו הן דרך ודרך ארץ עושר ומלאכה יין ושינה חמין והקזת דם,שמונה ממעטים את הזרע ואלו הן המלח והרעב והנתק בכייה ושינה על גבי קרקע וגדגדניות וכשות שלא בזמנה והקזת דם למטה כפלים,תנא כשם שקשה למטה כפלים כך יפה למעלה כפלים אמר רב פפא | 70a. bgrapesgrown by trellising the vine on ba palm treesoaked bin water. /b,As a remedy bfor lichen planus [ iḥazazita /i]on one’s skin, blet him bring seven large wheat kernels [ iarzanayata /i] andlet him broast them overa fire on the blade of ba new hoe. Andlet him bextract oil fromthe wheat band rubit into his skin. It is told: bRav Shimi bar Ashi used thisremedy bfor a certain gentilewho had bsomething else,i.e., leprosy, band he was healed. /b, bShmuel said: One who is struck with Persian spears [ ialunkei /i] will not livelong afterward, as he will certainly die from this wound. bIn the meantime, they should force-feed him fatty meatthat was roasted bover coals, and undiluted wine.If they do this, it is bpossible that he will livefor ba little bitlonger bandhave time to binstruct his householdwith regard to what they should do after his death.,Similarly, bRav Idi bar Avin said: One who swallowed a hornet will not live. In the meantime they should give him a quarter-ilog bof sharp [ ishamzag /i] vinegar to drink.If they do this, bit is possible that he will livefor ba little bitlonger bandhave time to binstruct his householdwith regard to what they should do after his death.,§ bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says:If one bate ox meat with a turnip, and slept bythe light of bthe moon on the night of the fourteenth or the fifteenthof the month bin the season of Tammuz,i.e., summer, he will be bafflicted with iaḥilu /i,a severe fever.,A Sage btaught: And one who fills his stomach with anything,meaning that he eats too much, will be bafflicted with iaḥilu /i. Rav Pappa said: Evenif he fills his stomach bwith dates.The Gemara asks: bIsn’tthis bobvious,as Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi explicitly mentioned if one fills his stomach with anything. The Gemara answers: bIt might enter your mind to saythat bsince the Master saidthe following in praise of dates: bDates satisfythe body, bwarmit up, bact as a laxative, strengthenthe body, band do not spoilit, one might bsaythat as dates are beneficial, he would not be harmed by eating too many. Nevertheless, it bteaches usthat they can also cause harm when eaten in excess.,The Gemara asks: bWhatis the affliction iaḥilu /imentioned here? bRabbi Elazar says: A fire of the bones.The Gemara asks: bWhat is a fire of the bones? Abaye said:This is what is called iesh garmei /iin Aramaic., bWhat is its remedy? Abaye said: My mother told methat bany drinkconsumed for medicinal purposes should be taken for either bthree or seven or twelvedays, depending on what is necessary for that specific ailment. bAndif bthisis taken to treat iaḥiluthen he must drink it buntil he is healed. /b, bAny drinkconsumed for medicinal purposes should be consumed bwith an empty heart,i.e., without eating first. bAndfor bthisdisease of iaḥiluhe consumes the medicine bafter he eats and drinks and enters the bathroom, and exits and washes his hands, and they bring him a fistful of ishetita /i,a type of food made bfrom lentils, and a fistful of aged wine. And let him mix them together and let him eatthis mixture. bAnd let him wrap himself with his sheet and sleep. And let there be noone bwho will awaken him until he awakens on his own. And when he awakens let him remove the sheet from himself. And ifhe does bnotdo this then the illness bwill return to him. /b,§ bElijahthe prophet bsaid to Rabbi Natan: Eat a thirdof your fill, band drink a thirdof your fill, band leave a thirdof your fill, so that bwhen you become angry youwill bbecome full.If you do this, there will be room, as it were, for the anger. If you become angry when your stomach is full you will be harmed., bRabbi Ḥiyya teaches: One who does not want to come toa situation whereby he contracts bintestinal diseaseshould bbecome accustomed to dippinghis food in wine or vinegar, both in the bsummerand in the bwinter.He also teaches: bYou should remove your hand,i.e., stop eating, bfrom a meal that you enjoyso that you do not overeat. bAnd do not delay yourself at the time when it is necessary to relieve yourself. /b, bMar Ukva said: This one who drinks inferior white wine [ itilya /i]will be bafflicted with weakness [ ivitak /i]. Rav Ḥisda said: There are sixty types of wine. The best of them allis bred, fragrantwine. bThe worst of them allis binferior white wine. /b, bRav Yehuda said: This one who sits near the fire during the morningsin the month bof Nisan and rubshimself bwith oil andthen bgoes out and sits in the sunwill be bafflicted with weakness. /b, bThe Sages taught:One who blet blood andafterward bengaged in sexual intercourse has weak childrenconceived from those acts of intercourse. If bboth of them,husband and wife, blet blood and engaged in sexual intercourse they will have children afflictedwith a disease known as ira’atan /i. Rav Pappa said: We saidthis bonlyif bhe did not taste anythingafter letting blood. bButif bhe tasted somethingthen bwe have noproblem bwith it. /b, bRabba bar Rav Huna says:One who bcameback bfromtraveling on bthe road and engaged in sexual intercourseimmediately bhas weak childrenconceived from those acts of intercourse. bThe Sages taught:With regard to bone who comesin bfrom the bathroom,he should bnot engage in sexual intercourse until he waits the measure oftime it takes to walk bhalf a imilbecause the demon of the bathroom accompanies him. And if he engaged in sexual intercoursewithout waiting this measure of time, bhe has childrenwho are bepileptic. /b, bThe Sages taught: One who engages in sexual intercoursewhile bstandingwill be bafflicted by spasms.One who engages in sexual intercourse while bsittingwill be bafflicted with idalarya /i. /bIf bshe,the woman, is babove and he,the husband, is bbelowduring sexual intercourse, then he will be bafflicted with idalarya /i. /b,The Gemara asks: bWhatis idalarya /i? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said:The bremedy for idalarya /iis idardara /i.The Gemara asks: bWhatis idardara /i? Abaye said: Saffron of thorns. Rav Pappawould bchew [ ialeis /i] and swallowthis remedy. bRav Pappiwould bchew and spit itout., bAbaye says:As a remedy for bone who is not an expert,i.e., does not have strength, binthe bway of the world,i.e., in sexual intercourse, blet him bring three vessels [ ikefizei /i],each containing three-quarters of a ilogof bsafflower thorns. And let him grind them, and boil them in wine, and drinkthe mixture. bRabbi Yoḥa says: These arethe remedies that breturn me to my youthwith regard to sexual intercourse.,§ bThree things diminish a person’s strength, and they are: Fear,traveling on the broad, and sin.The Gemara explains: bFear, as it is written: “My heart flutters, my strength fails me”(Psalms 38:11). Traveling on the broad, as it is written: “He has weakened my strength on the road”(Psalms 102:24). bSin, as it is written: “My strength fails because of my sin”(Psalms 31:11)., bThree things break a person’s body, and they are:If he batewhile bstanding,if he bdrankwhile bstanding, andif he bengaged in sexual intercoursewhile bstanding. /b,There are bfiveactions that bring one bcloser to death thanto blife, and they are:If he bate and stoodup immediately, if he bdrank and stoodup immediately, if he blet blood and stoodup immediately, if he bslept and stoodup immediately, and if he bengaged in sexual intercourse and stoodup immediately.,With regard to bone who performsthe following acts, if he performs the bsixof bthemconsecutively bhe dies immediately, and they are:If bone cameback bfroma journey bon the road and was exhausted, let blood, and entered the bathhouse, and drank and became intoxicated, and slept on the ground, and engaged in sexual intercourse,then he will die. bRabbi Yoḥa says: But hewill die for certain only in the case bwhere he performs them in this order. /b, bAbaye said:If he performs these actions bin this order he will die.But if he performs them bout of order he will become weak.The Gemara asks: bIs that so? But didn’ta woman named bMe’oret make her slaveperform bthree of theseactions band he diedas a result? The Gemara answers: bThatslave bwas weak,which is why he died. But an ordinary individual would die only upon performing all of these acts in the previously mentioned order., bEightactions are bdifficultfor the body and the soul to handle bin largeamounts bandare bbeneficial in smallamounts, band they are:Traveling on the broad,engaging in the bway of the world,i.e., engaging in sexual intercourse, having bwealth, work,drinking bwine, sleep, hot water, and bloodletting. /b, bEightactions or illnesses bdecrease the semen, and they are: Salt, hunger,a skin disease called inetek /i, crying, sleeping on the ground,the bmelilotplant, band doddereaten bnot in its time,i.e., before it is ripe. bAnd bloodlettingperformed bbelow,on the lower portion of the body, causes btwiceas much harm as the other actions mentioned.,The Sage btaught: Just asbloodletting bbelowcauses btwiceas much bharm, so too,bloodletting babove,on the upper portion of the body, is btwiceas beffective. Rav Pappa said: /b |
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21. Babylonian Talmud, Hagigah, 16a, 12a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 12a. השתא דנפקא ליה מלמקצה השמים ועד קצה השמים למן היום אשר ברא אלהים אדם על הארץ למה לי,כדר' אלעזר דאמר רבי אלעזר אדם הראשון מן הארץ עד לרקיע שנאמר למן היום אשר ברא אלהים אדם על הארץ וכיון שסרח הניח הקב"ה ידיו עליו ומיעטו שנאמר (תהלים קלט, ה) אחור וקדם צרתני ותשת עלי כפך,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב אדם הראשון מסוף העולם ועד סופו היה שנאמר למן היום אשר ברא אלהים אדם על הארץ ולמקצה השמים ועד קצה השמים כיון שסרח הניח הקב"ה ידו עליו ומיעטו שנאמר ותשת עלי כפך,אי הכי קשו קראי אהדדי אידי ואידי חד שיעורא הוא,ואמר רב יהודה אמר רב עשרה דברים נבראו ביום ראשון ואלו הן שמים וארץ תהו ובהו אור וחשך רוח ומים מדת יום ומדת לילה,שמים וארץ דכתיב (בראשית א, א) בראשית ברא אלהים את השמים ואת הארץ תהו ובהו דכתיב (בראשית א, ב) והארץ היתה תהו ובהו אור וחשך חשך דכתיב (בראשית א, ב) וחשך על פני תהום אור דכתיב (בראשית א, ג) ויאמר אלהים יהי אור רוח ומים דכתיב (בראשית א, ב) ורוח אלהים מרחפת על פני המים מדת יום ומדת לילה דכתיב (בראשית א, ה) ויהי ערב ויהי בקר יום אחד,תנא תהו קו ירוק שמקיף את כל העולם כולו שממנו יצא חשך שנאמר (תהלים יח, יב) ישת חשך סתרו סביבותיו בהו אלו אבנים המפולמות המשוקעות בתהום שמהן יוצאין מים שנאמר (ישעיהו לד, יא) ונטה עליה קו תהו ואבני בהו,ואור ביום ראשון איברי והכתיב ויתן אותם אלהים ברקיע השמים וכתיב ויהי ערב ויהי בקר יום רביעי,כדר' אלעזר דא"ר אלעזר אור שברא הקב"ה ביום ראשון אדם צופה בו מסוף העולם ועד סופו כיון שנסתכל הקב"ה בדור המבול ובדור הפלגה וראה שמעשיהם מקולקלים עמד וגנזו מהן שנאמר (איוב לח, טו) וימנע מרשעים אורם,ולמי גנזו לצדיקים לעתיד לבא שנאמר וירא אלהים את האור כי טוב ואין טוב אלא צדיק שנאמר (ישעיהו ג, י) אמרו צדיק כי טוב,כיון שראה אור שגנזו לצדיקים שמח שנאמר (משלי יג, ט) אור צדיקים ישמח,כתנאי אור שברא הקב"ה ביום ראשון אדם צופה ומביט בו מסוף העולם ועד סופו דברי רבי יעקב וחכ"א הן הן מאורות שנבראו ביום ראשון ולא נתלו עד יום רביעי,אמר רב זוטרא בר טוביא אמר רב בעשרה דברים נברא העולם בחכמה ובתבונה ובדעת ובכח ובגערה ובגבורה בצדק ובמשפט בחסד וברחמים,בחכמה ובתבונה דכתיב (משלי ג, יט) ה' בחכמה יסד ארץ כונן שמים בתבונה בדעת דכתיב (משלי ג, כ) בדעתו תהומות נבקעו בכח וגבורה דכתיב (תהלים סה, ז) מכין הרים בכחו נאזר בגבורה בגערה דכתיב (איוב כו, יא) עמודי שמים ירופפו ויתמהו מגערתו בצדק ומשפט דכתיב (תהלים פט, טו) צדק ומשפט מכון כסאך בחסד ורחמים דכתיב (תהלים כה, ו) זכר רחמיך ה' וחסדיך כי מעולם המה,ואמר רב יהודה אמר רב בשעה שברא הקב"ה את העולם היה מרחיב והולך כשתי פקעיות של שתי עד שגער בו הקב"ה והעמידו שנאמר עמודי שמים ירופפו ויתמהו מגערתו והיינו דאמר ר"ל מאי דכתיב (בראשית לה, יא) אני אל שדי אני הוא שאמרתי לעולם די אמר ר"ל בשעה שברא הקב"ה את הים היה מרחיב והולך עד שגער בו הקב"ה ויבשו שנאמר (נחום א, ד) גוער בים ויבשהו וכל הנהרות החריב,ת"ר ב"ש אומרים שמים נבראו תחלה ואח"כ נבראת הארץ שנאמר בראשית ברא אלהים את השמים ואת הארץ וב"ה אומרים ארץ נבראת תחלה ואח"כ שמים שנאמר (בראשית ב, ד) ביום עשות ה' אלהים ארץ ושמים,אמר להם ב"ה לב"ש לדבריכם אדם בונה עלייה ואח"כ בונה בית שנאמר (עמוס ט, ו) הבונה בשמים מעלותיו ואגודתו על ארץ יסדה אמר להם ב"ש לב"ה לדבריכם אדם עושה שרפרף ואח"כ עושה כסא שנאמר (ישעיהו סו, א) כה אמר ה' השמים כסאי והארץ הדום רגלי וחכ"א זה וזה כאחת נבראו שנאמר (ישעיהו מח, יג) אף ידי יסדה ארץ וימיני טפחה שמים קורא אני אליהם יעמדו יחדו,ואידך מאי יחדו דלא משתלפי מהדדי קשו קראי אהדדי אמר ר"ל כשנבראו ברא שמים ואח"כ ברא הארץ וכשנטה נטה הארץ ואחר כך נטה שמים,מאי שמים א"ר יוסי בר חנינא ששם מים במתניתא תנא אש ומים מלמד שהביאן הקב"ה וטרפן זה בזה ועשה מהן רקיע,שאל רבי ישמעאל את ר"ע כשהיו מהלכין בדרך א"ל אתה ששימשת את נחום איש גם זו כ"ב שנה שהיה דורש כל אתין שבתורה את השמים ואת הארץ מה היה דורש בהן א"ל אילו נאמר שמים וארץ הייתי אומר שמים שמו של הקב"ה עכשיו שנאמר את השמים ואת הארץ שמים שמים ממש ארץ ארץ ממש | 12a. The Gemara poses a question: bNow that it is derived fromthe phrase b“from one end of the heavens to the other,” why do Ineed the phrase b“since the day that God created man upon the earth”? /b,The Gemara answers that this phrase teaches us something else, baccording to Rabbi Elazar.As bRabbi Elazar said:The height of bAdam the first manreached bfrom the ground to the skies, as it is stated: “Since the day that God created man upon the earth,and from one end of the heavens” (Deuteronomy 4:32). bWhen he sinned, the Holy One, Blessed be He, placed His hand upon him and diminished him, as it is stated: “You fashioned me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me”(Psalms 139:5)., bRav Yehuda saidthat bRav said: Thesize of bAdam the first man was from one end of the world to the other, as it is stated: “Since the day that God created man upon the earth, and from one end of the heavens to the other,”which indicates that he spanned the entire length of the world. bOnce he sinned, the Holy One, Blessed be He, placed His hand upon him and diminished him, as it states: “And laid Your hand upon me.” /b,The Gemara asks: bIf so, thetwo parts of the bverse contradict each other,since one indicates that his height reached the heavens while the other says it reached the end of the earth. The Gemara answers: Both bthis and that are one,the same, bmeasure. /b,§ The Gemara continues to discuss Creation: bRav Yehuda saidthat bRav said: Ten things were created on the first dayof Creation, band they areas follows: bHeaven and earth; itohuand ivohu /i,i.e., unformed and void; blight and darkness; wind and water; the length of day and the length of night. /b,All of these are derived from the Torah: bHeaven and earth, as it is written: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”(Genesis 1:1). iTohuand ivohu /i, as it is written: “And the earth was unformed and void [ itohu vavohu /i]”(Genesis 1:2). bLight and darkness; darkness, as it is written: “And darkness was upon the face of the deep”(Genesis 1:2); blight, as it is written: “And God said: Let there be light”(Genesis 1:3). bWind and water, as it is written: “And the wind of God hovered over the face of the waters”(Genesis 1:2). bThe length of day and the length of night, as it is written: “And there was evening, and there was morning, one day”(Genesis 1:5)., bIt was taughtin the iTosefta /i: iTohu /iis ba green line that encompasses the entire world, and from which darkness emerges, as it is stated: “He made darkness His hiding place round about Him”(Psalms 18:12), indicating that a line of darkness surrounds the world. iVohu /i; these are damp stones submerged in the depths, from which water emerges, as it is stated: “And He shall stretch over it the line of itohuand stones of ivohu /i”(Isaiah 34:11), which demonstrates that itohuis a line and that ivohuis referring to stones.,The Gemara poses a question: bAndwas blight created on the first day? But isn’t it written: “And God set them in the firmament of the heaven”(Genesis 1:17), band it isalso bwritten: “And there was evening, and there was morning, a fourth day”(Genesis 1:19), indicating that light was created on the fourth day.,The Gemara answers: This should be understood bin accordance with Rabbi Elazar, as Rabbi Elazar said:The blight that the Holy One, Blessed be He, created on the first daywas not that of the sun but a different kind of light, bthrough which man could observe from one end of the world to the other. But when the Holy One, Blessed be He, looked upon the generation of the Flood and the generation of the Dispersion and saw that their ways were corruptand that they might misuse this light for evil, bHe arose and concealed it from them, as it is stated: “And from the wicked their light is withheld”(Job 38:15)., bAnd for whom did He conceal it? For the righteous people in the future, as it is stated: “And God saw the light, that it was good”(Genesis 1:4), band “good” is referring to noneother than the brighteous, as it is stated: “Sayof bthe righteous that it shall be goodfor them, for they shall eat the fruit of their actions” (Isaiah 3:10)., bWhen the light saw that it had been concealed for the righteous, it rejoiced, as it is stated: “The light for the righteous shall rejoice”(Proverbs 13:9).,The Gemara comments: This is blikea dispute between itanna’im /i:The blight that the Holy One, Blessed be He, created onthe bfirst daywas so profound that bman could observe through it from one end of the world to the other;this is bthe statement of Rabbi Ya’akov. And the Rabbis say:This light bis the very same as the lights created on the first day, but they were not suspendedin their designated places in the firmament buntil the fourth day. /b,§ bRav Zutra bar Tuvya saidthat bRav said: The world was created through ten attributes: Through wisdom, through understanding, through knowledge, through strength, through rebuke, through might, through righteousness, through justice, through kindness, and through mercy. /b,Scriptural proof is provided for this statement as follows: It was created bthrough wisdom and through understanding, as it is written: “The Lord founded earth with wisdom, and established the heavens with understanding”(Proverbs 3:19); bthrough knowledge, as it is written: “With His knowledge the depths were broken up”(Proverbs 3:20); bthrough strength and through might, as it is written: “Who by Your strength sets fast the mountains, who is girded about with might”(Psalms 65:7); bthrough rebuke, as it is written: “The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at His rebuke”(Job 26:11); bthrough righteousness and justice, as it is written: “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne”(Psalms 89:15); bthrough kindness and mercy, as it is written: “Remember Your mercies, O Lord, and Your kindnesses, for they are from times of old”(Psalms 25:6)., bAnd Rav Yehuda saidthat bRav said,with regard to the same matter: bWhen the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the world, it continued to expand like two balls of a warp,whose cord lengthens as they unravel, buntil the Holy One, Blessed be He, rebuked it and made it stand still, as it is stated: “The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at His rebuke”(Job 26:11). bAnd this isthe same as that which bReish Lakish said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “I am the Almighty God[iEl Shaddai/b]” (Genesis 17:1)? It means: bI am He Who said to the world “enough [dai],”instructing it to stop expanding. Similarly, bReish Lakish said: When the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the sea, it continued to expand until the Holy One, Blessed be He, rebuked it and made it dry, as it is stated: “He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and desiccates all the rivers”(Nahum 1:4).,§ Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel dispute the order of Creation, as bthe Sages taught: Beit Shammai say: The heavens were created first and afterward the earth was created, as it is stated: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”(Genesis 1:1), which indicates that heaven came first. bAnd Beit Hillel say:The bearth was created first, and heaven after it, as it is stated: “On the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven”(Genesis 2:4)., bBeit Hillel said to Beit Shammai: According to your words,does ba person build a second floor and buildthe first floor of bthe house afterward? As it is stated: “It is He Who builds His upper chambers in the heaven, and has founded His vault upon the earth”(Amos 9:6), indicating that the upper floor, heaven, was built above the earth. bBeit Shammai said to Beit Hillel: According to your words,does ba person make a stoolfor his feet, band make a seat afterward? As it is stated: “So said the Lord: The heavens are My seat, and the earth My footstool”(Isaiah 66:1). bBut the Rabbis say:Both bthis and that were created as one, for it is stated: “Indeed, My hand has laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand has spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand up together”(Isaiah 48:13), implying that they were created as one.,The Gemara asks: bAnd the others,Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel, bwhat,in their opinion, bisthe meaning of b“together”?The Gemara responds: It means bthat they do not separate from each other.In other words, the term “together” is referring not to the moment of their creation but to the manner of their positioning. The Gemara comments: In any case, bthe verses contradict each other,as heaven is sometimes mentioned first, while on other occasions earth is listed beforehand. bReish Lakish said: When they were created, Hefirst bcreatedthe bheavens and afterward created the earth, but when He spread themout and fixed them in their places, bHe spreadout bthe earth and afterward He spreadout bthe heavens. /b,Incidental to the above, the Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning and source of the word b“heaven” [ ishamayim /i]? Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥanina said:It is an acronym, ishesham mayim /i,meaning: That water is there. bIt was taught in a ibaraita /i: iShamayimmeans iesh umayim /i,fire and water, which bteaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, brought themboth band combined them together, and madethe bfirmament from them. /b,§ The Gemara relates: bRabbi Yishmael asked Rabbi Akivaa question bwhen they were walking along the way. He said to him: You who served Naḥum of Gam Zu for twenty-two years, who would expoundand learn that beveryappearance of the word ietin the Torahis meant to teach something, bwhat would he expound fromthe phrase: b“The heaven and the earth”[iet hashamayim ve’et ha’aretz/b] (Genesis 1:1)? bHe said to him:These words should be expounded as follows: bHad it stated:In the beginning God created ihashamayim veha’aretz /i, i.e., the heaven and the earth, without the word iet /i, bI would have said: iShamayimis the name of the Holy One, Blessed be He,and the same goes for iaretz /i, and the verse would sound as if it meant that God, whose name is iShamayimand iAretz /i, created the world. bSince it states “ iet hashamayim ve’et ha’aretz /i,”it is clear that these are created objects and that ishamayim /imeans the bactual heavenand iaretz /iis the bactual earth.It is for this reason that the word ietis necessary. |
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22. Babylonian Talmud, Horayot, 13b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 13b. רב פפא אמר אפילו שופתא מרא גייצי,ת"ר חמשה דברים משכחים את הלימוד האוכל ממה שאוכל עכבר וממה שאוכל חתול והאוכל לב של בהמה והרגיל בזיתים והשותה מים של שיורי רחיצה והרוחץ רגליו זו על גבי זו ויש אומרים אף המניח כליו תחת מראשותיו חמשה דברים משיבים את הלימוד פת פחמין וכל שכן פחמין עצמן והאוכל ביצה מגולגלת בלא מלח והרגיל בשמן זית והרגיל ביין ובשמים והשותה מים של שיורי עיסה ויש אומרים אף הטובל אצבעו במלח ואוכל,הרגיל בשמן זית מסייע ליה לרבי יוחנן דאמר רבי יוחנן כשם שהזית משכח לימוד של שבעים שנה כך שמן זית משיב לימוד של שבעים שנה:,והרגיל ביין ובשמים: מסייע ליה לרבא דאמר רבא חמרא וריחני פקחין:,והטובל אצבעו במלח: אמר ר"ל ובאחת כתנאי ר' יהודה אומר אחת ולא שתים רבי יוסי אומר שתים ולא שלש וסימניך קמיצה,עשרה דברים קשים ללימוד העובר תחת האפסר [הגמל] וכל שכן תחת גמל [עצמו] והעובר בין שני גמלים והעובר בין שתי נשים והאשה העוברת בין שני אנשים והעובר מתחת ריח רע של נבילה והעובר תחת הגשר שלא עברו תחתיו מים מ' יום והאוכל פת שלא בשל כל צרכו והאוכל בשר מזוהמא ליסטרון והשותה מאמת המים העוברת בבית הקברות והמסתכל בפני המת ויש אומרים אף הקורא כתב שעל גבי הקבר,ת"ר כשהנשיא נכנס כל העם עומדים ואין יושבים עד שאומר להם שבו כשאב ב"ד נכנס עושים לו שורה אחת מכאן ושורה אחת מכאן עד שישב במקומו כשחכם נכנס אחד עומד ואחד יושב עד שישב במקומו בני חכמים ותלמידי חכמים בזמן שרבים צריכים להם מפסיעין על ראשי העם יצא לצורך יכנס וישב במקומו,בני ת"ח שממונים אביהם פרנס על הצבור בזמן שיש להם דעת לשמוע נכנסים ויושבים לפני אביהם ואחוריהם כלפי העם בזמן שאין להם דעת לשמוע נכנסים ויושבים לפני אביהם ופניהם כלפי העם רבי אלעזר בר ר' [צדוק] אומר אף בבית המשתה עושים אותם סניפין,[אמר מר] יצא לצורך נכנס ויושב במקומו אמר רב פפא לא אמרו אלא לקטנים אבל לגדולים לא הוה ליה למבדק נפשיה מעיקרא דאמר רב יהודה אמר רב לעולם ילמד אדם עצמו להשכים ולהעריב כדי שלא יתרחק (אמר רבא) האידנא דחלשא עלמא אפילו לגדולים נמי,רבי אלעזר ב"ר [צדוק] אומר אף בבית המשתה עושים אותם סניפים אמר רבא בחיי אביהם בפני אביהם,א"ר יוחנן בימי רשב"ג נישנית משנה זו רבן שמעון בן גמליאל נשיא רבי מאיר חכם רבי נתן אב"ד כי הוה רשב"ג התם הוו קיימי כולי עלמא מקמיה כי הוו עיילי רבי מאיר ורבי נתן הוו קיימי כולי עלמא מקמייהו אמר רשב"ג לא בעו למיהוי היכרא בין דילי לדידהו תקין הא מתניתא,ההוא יומא לא הוו רבי מאיר ורבי נתן התם למחר כי אתו חזו דלא קמו מקמייהו כדרגילא מילתא אמרי מאי האי אמרו להו הכי תקין רשב"ג,אמר ליה ר"מ לרבי נתן אנא חכם ואת אב"ד נתקין מילתא כי לדידן מאי נעביד ליה נימא ליה גלי עוקצים דלית ליה וכיון דלא גמר נימא ליה (תהלים קו, ב) מי ימלל גבורות ה' ישמיע כל תהלתו למי נאה למלל גבורות ה' מי שיכול להשמיע כל תהלותיו נעבריה והוי אנא אב"ד ואת נשיא,שמעינהו רבי יעקב בן קרשי אמר דלמא חס ושלום אתיא מלתא לידי כיסופא אזל יתיב אחורי עיליתיה דרשב"ג פשט גרס ותנא גרס ותנא,אמר מאי דקמא דלמא חס ושלום איכא בי מדרשא מידי יהב דעתיה וגרסה למחר אמרו ליה ניתי מר וניתני בעוקצין פתח ואמר בתר דאוקים אמר להו אי לא גמירנא כסיפיתנן,פקיד ואפקינהו מבי מדרשא הוו כתבי קושייתא [בפתקא] ושדו התם דהוה מיפריק מיפריק דלא הוו מיפריק כתבי פירוקי ושדו אמר להו רבי יוסי תורה מבחוץ ואנו מבפנים,אמר להן רבן [שמעון בן] גמליאל ניעיילינהו מיהו ניקנסינהו דלא נימרו שמעתא משמייהו אסיקו לרבי מאיר אחרים ולר' נתן יש אומרים אחוו להו בחלמייהו זילו פייסוהו [לרבן שמעון ב"ג] רבי נתן אזל רבי מאיר לא אזל אמר דברי חלומות לא מעלין ולא מורידין כי אזל רבי נתן אמר ליה רשב"ג נהי דאהני לך קמרא דאבוך למהוי אב ב"ד שויניך נמי נשיא,מתני ליה רבי לרבן שמעון בריה אחרים אומרים אילו היה תמורה | 13b. bRav Pappa said: They gnaw even on the handle of a hoe. /b,§ bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: There are bfive factorsthat bcauseone to bforgethis Torah bstudy: One who eats from that which a mouse eats and from that which a cat eats, and one who eats the heart of an animal, and one who is accustomed toeating bolives, and one who drinks water that remains from washing, and one who washes his feetwith bthisfoot batop thatfoot. bAnd some say: Also one who places his garments under his head.Correspondingly, there are bfive factorsthat brestoreforgotten Torah bstudy:Eating bbread baked on coals and all the more soone who warms himself with the heat of the bcoals themselves, and one who eats a hard-boiled egg [ ibeitza megulgelet /i] without salt, and one who is accustomed toeating bolive oil, and one who is accustomed todrinking bwine andsmelling bspices, and one who drinks water that remains fromkneading bdough. And some say: Also one who dips his finger in salt and eatsit.,The Gemara elaborates on the ibaraita /i: bOne who is accustomed toeating bolive oilrestores forgotten Torah study. The Gemara notes: This bsupportsthe opinion of bRabbi Yoḥa, as Rabbi Yoḥa said: Just aseating ban olive causesone bto forget seventy years’ worth ofTorah bstudy, olive oil restores seventy years’ worth ofTorah bstudy. /b,The ibaraitacontinues: bAnd one who is accustomed todrinking bwine andsmelling bspicesrestores forgotten Torah study. The Gemara notes: This bsupportsthe opinion of bRava, as Rava said: Wine and spices rendered me wise. /b,The ibaraitacontinues: bOne who dips his finger in saltand eats it restores forgotten Torah study. bReish Lakish says: Andthat is the case bwith regard to onefinger. The Gemara notes: This is bparallel toa dispute between itanna’im /i. Rabbi Yehuda says: Onefinger bbut not two. Rabbi Yosei says: Twofingers bbut not three. And your mnemonicfor the fact that the dispute is between one and two fingers is ikemitza /i,i.e., the ring finger. When one presses his ring finger to his palm, there remain two straight fingers on one side and one on the other., bTen factors are detrimental forTorah bstudy: One who passes beneath the bit of the camel, and all the more soone who passes bbeneath a camel itself; and one who passes between two camels; and one who passes between two women; and a woman who passes between two men; and one who passes beneatha place where there is the bfoul odor of an animal carcass; and one who passes under a bridge beneath which water has not passedfor bforty days; and one who eats bread that was not sufficiently baked; and one who eats meat from izuhama listeron /i,a utensil consisting of a spoon and a fork, used to remove the film on the surface of soup; band one who drinks from an aqueduct that passes through a cemetery; and one who gazes at the face of the dead. And some say: Also one who reads the writing that is onthe stone of ba grave. /b,§ bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: bWhen the iNasi /iof the Sanhedrin benters, all the people stand and they do not sit until he says to them: Sit. When the deputy iNasi /iof the Sanhedrin benters,the people bform for him one row from here,on this side of the path that he takes, band one row from there,on the other side of it, in a display of deference, buntil he sits in his place,and then they may be seated. bWhen the iḤakham /i,who is ranked third among the members of the Sanhedrin, benters, oneperson bstandswhen he is within four cubits of the iḤakham /i, band another sits,i.e., when one is no longer within four cubits of the iḤakhamhe may sit. And all those whom the Ḥakham passes do this, buntil he sits in his place. When the multitudes require theirservices, i.e., they serve a public role, bsons of the Sages and Torah scholars may step over the heads of the peopleseated on the ground in order to reach their places in the Sanhedrin. If one of the Sages bleft forthe bpurposeof relieving himself, when he is finished bhe may enter and sit in his placein the Sanhedrin, and he need not be concerned that he is imposing upon those assembled., bWhen they have the wisdom to hearand to study, bthe sons of Torah scholars, whose fathers are appointed as leaders of the congregation, enter and sit before their fathers, and their backsare directed btoward the people. When they do not have the wisdom to hearand to study bthey enter and sit before their fathers, and their facesare directed btoward the people,so everyone sees that they are seated there in deference to their fathers but not as students. bRabbi Elazar, son of Rabbi Tzadok, says: Even ata wedding bparty one renders them attachments [ isenifin /i]and seats them adjacent to their fathers., bThe Master said:If one of the Sages bleft forthe bpurposeof relieving himself, when he is finished bhe may enter and sit in his place. Rav Pappa said:The Sages bsaidthis bonlywith regard to one who leaves bfor minorbodily functions, i.e., to urinate. bButwith regard to one who leaves bfor majorbodily functions, i.e., to defecate, bno,he may not return to his place, because bhe should have examined himself initiallyso that he would not need to leave. His failure to do so constitutes negligence and he may not impose upon others when he returns, bas Rav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: A person should always accustom himself torelieving himself bin the morning and in the evening so that he will notneed to bdistance himself during the daylight hours to find an appropriate place. bRava said: Today, when the world is weakand people are not as healthy as they once were, one may bevenreturn after he leaves bfor majorbodily functions., bRabbi Elazar, son of Rabbi Tzadok, says: Even ata wedding bparty one renders them attachments. Rava said:This applies bduring the lifetime of their fathers and in the presence of their fathers. /b,§ bRabbi Yoḥa says: This mishna,i.e., the preceding ibaraita /i, bwas taught during the days of Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel. Rabban Shimon ben Gamlielwas the iNasi /i, Rabbi Meirwas the iḤakham /i,and bRabbi Natanwas the bdeputy iNasi /i. When Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel was there, everyone would arise before him. When Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan would enter, everyone would arise before them. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said: Shouldn’t there be a conspicuous distinction between me and themin terms of the manner in which deference is shown? Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel binstitutedthe provisions delineated in bthis ibaraita /ithat distinguish between the iNasiand his subordinates with regard to the deference shown them., bThat day,when Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel instituted these provisions, bRabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan were not there. The following day when they cameto the study hall, bthey saw thatthe people bdid not stand before them as the matter was typicallydone. bThey said: What is this?The people bsaid to them: Thisis what bRabban Shimon ben Gamliel instituted. /b, bRabbi Meir said to Rabbi Natan: I amthe iḤakhamand you arethe bdeputy iNasi /i. Let us devise a matterand do to him bas he did to us. What shall we do to him? Let us say to him: Revealto us tractate iOkatzim /i, which he does notknow. bAnd onceit is clear to all bthat he did not learn,he will not have anything to say. Then bwe will say to him: “Who can express the mighty acts of the Lord, shall make all His praises heard?”(Psalms 106:2), indicating: bFor whom is it becoming to express the mighty acts of the Lord?It is becoming for bone who is capable of making all His praises heard,and not for one who does not know one of the tractates. bWe will remove himfrom his position as iNasi /i, band I will be deputy iNasiand youwill be iNasi /i. /b, bRabbi Ya’akov ben Korshei heard themtalking, and bsaid: Perhaps, Heaven forfend,this bmatterwill bcome toa situation of bhumiliationfor Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel. He did not wish to speak criticism or gossip about Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan, so bhe wentand bsat behind the upper storywhere bRabban Shimon ben Gamliellived. bHe explainedtractate iOkatzin /i; bhe studiedit aloud band repeatedit, and bstudiedit aloud band repeatedit.,Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel bsaidto himself: bWhatis this bthatis transpiring bbefore us? Perhaps, Heaven forfend, there is somethingtranspiring in bthe study hall.He suspected that Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan were planning something. bHe concentrated and studiedtractate iOkatzin /i. bThe followingday Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan bsaid to him: Let the Master come and teacha lesson bintractate iOkatzin /i. He began and statedthe lesson he had prepared. bAfter he completedteaching the tractate, bhe said to them: If I had not studiedthe tractate, byouwould have bhumiliated me. /b,Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel bcommandedthose present band they expelledRabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan bfrom the study hallas punishment. Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan bwould write difficulties on a scrap of paper [ ipitka /i] and would throwthem bthereinto the study hall. Those difficulties bthat were resolved were resolved;as for those bthat were not resolved,Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan bwrote resolutionson a scrap of paper band threwthem into the study hall. bRabbi Yosei said tothe Sages: How is it that the bTorah,embodied in the preeminent Torah scholars, bis outside and we are inside? /b, bRabban Shimon ben Gamliel said to them: Let us admit theminto the study hall. bBut we will penalize themin bthat we will not cite ihalakhain their names. They citedstatements bof Rabbi Meirin the name of iAḥerim /i,meaning: Others, bandthey cited statements bof Rabbi Natanin the name of iyesh omerim /i,meaning: Some say. Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan bwere showna message bin their dreams: Go, appease Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel. Rabbi Natan went. Rabbi Meir did not go. He saidin his heart: bMatters of dreams are insignificant. When Rabbi Natan went, Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said to him: Although theornate bbelt,i.e., the importance, bof your father was effectivein enabling you bto become deputy iNasi /i,as Rabbi Natan’s father was the Babylonian Exilarch, bwill it render you iNasias well? /b,Years later, bRabbiYehuda HaNasi btaught Rabban Shimon his sonthat iAḥerimsay: If it wasconsidered ba substitute, /b |
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23. Babylonian Talmud, Ketuvot, 67b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 67b. שבאו לינשא משיאין את היתומה ואחר כך משיאין את היתום מפני שבושתה של אשה מרובה משל איש:,ת"ר יתום שבא לישא שוכרין לו בית ומציעין לו מטה וכל כלי תשמישו ואחר כך משיאין לו אשה שנאמר (דברים טו, ח) די מחסורו אשר יחסר לו די מחסורו זה הבית אשר יחסר זה מטה ושלחן לו זו אשה וכן הוא אומר (בראשית ב, יח) אעשה לו עזר כנגדו:,תנו רבנן די מחסורו אתה מצווה עליו לפרנסו ואי אתה מצווה עליו לעשרו אשר יחסר לו אפילו סוס לרכוב עליו ועבד לרוץ לפניו אמרו עליו על הלל הזקן שלקח לעני בן טובים אחד סוס לרכוב עליו ועבד לרוץ לפניו פעם אחת לא מצא עבד לרוץ לפניו ורץ לפניו שלשה מילין:,תנו רבנן מעשה באנשי גליל העליון שלקחו לעני בן טובים אחד מציפורי ליטרא בשר בכל יום ליטרא בשר מאי רבותא אמר רב הונא ליטרא בשר משל עופות ואיבעית אימא בליטרא בשר ממש רב אשי אמר התם כפר קטן היה בכל יומא הוה מפסדי חיותא אמטולתיה:,ההוא דאתא לקמיה דרבי נחמיה אמר ליה במה אתה סועד א"ל בבשר שמן ויין ישן רצונך שתגלגל עמי בעדשים גלגל עמו בעדשים ומת אמר אוי לו לזה שהרגו נחמיה אדרבה אוי לו לנחמיה שהרגו לזה מיבעי ליה אלא איהו הוא דלא איבעי ליה לפנוקי נפשיה כולי האי,ההוא דאתא לקמיה דרבא אמר לו במה אתה סועד אמר לו בתרנגולת פטומה ויין ישן אמר ליה ולא חיישת לדוחקא דציבורא א"ל אטו מדידהו קאכילנא מדרחמנא קאכילנא דתנינא (תהלים קמה, טו) עיני כל אליך ישברו ואתה נותן להם את אכלם בעתו בעתם לא נאמר אלא בעתו מלמד שכל אחד ואחד נותן הקב"ה פרנסתו בעתו,אדהכי אתאי אחתיה דרבא דלא חזיא ליה תליסרי שני ואתיא ליה תרנגולת פטומה ויין ישן אמר מאי דקמא א"ל נענתי לך קום אכול,תנו רבנן אין לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס נותנין לו לשום הלואה וחוזרין ונותנין לו לשום מתנה דברי רבי מאיר וחכמים אומרים נותנין לו לשום מתנה וחוזרין ונותנין לו לשום הלואה לשום מתנה הא לא שקיל אמר רבא לפתוח לו לשום מתנה,יש לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס נותנין לו לשום מתנה וחוזרין ונפרעין ממנו חוזרין ונפרעין הימנו תו לא שקיל אמר רב פפא לאחר מיתה ר"ש אומר יש לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס אין נזקקין לו אין לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס אומרים לו הבא משכון וטול כדי שתזוח דעתו עליו,ת"ר (דברים טו, ח) העבט זה שאין לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס שנותנים לו לשום הלואה וחוזרין ונותנין לו לשום מתנה תעביטנו זה שיש לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס שנותנין לו לשום מתנה וחוזרין ונפרעין הימנו לאחר מיתה דברי ר' יהודה,וחכ"א יש לו ואינו רוצה להתפרנס אין נזקקין לו ואלא מה אני מקיים תעביטנו דברה תורה כלשון בני אדם,מר עוקבא הוה עניא בשיבבותיה דהוה רגיל כל יומא דשדי ליה ארבעה זוזי בצינורא דדשא יום אחד אמר איזיל איחזי מאן קעביד בי ההוא טיבותא ההוא יומא נגהא ליה למר עוקבא לבי מדרשא אתיא דביתהו בהדיה,כיון דחזיוה דקא מצלי ליה לדשא נפק בתרייהו רהוט מקמיה עיילי לההוא אתונא דהוה גרופה נורא הוה קא מיקליין כרעיה דמר עוקבא אמרה ליה דביתהו שקול כרעיך אותיב אכרעאי חלש דעתיה אמרה ליה אנא שכיחנא בגויה דביתא ומקרבא אהנייתי,ומאי כולי האי דאמר מר זוטרא בר טוביה אמר רב ואמרי לה אמר רב הונא בר ביזנא אמר ר"ש חסידא ואמרי לה א"ר יוחנן משום רבי שמעון בן יוחי נוח לו לאדם שימסור עצמו לתוך כבשן האש ואל ילבין פני חברו ברבים מנא לן מתמר דכתיב (בראשית לח, כה) היא מוצאת,מר עוקבא הוה עניא בשיבבותיה דהוה רגיל לשדורי ליה ארבע מאה זוזי כל מעלי יומא דכיפורא יומא חד שדרינהו ניהליה ביד בריה אתא אמר ליה לא צריך אמר מאי חזית חזאי דקא מזלפי ליה יין ישן אמר מפנק כולי האי עייפינהו ושדרינהו ניהליה,כי קא ניחא נפשיה אמר אייתו לי חושבנאי דצדקה אשכח דהוה כתיב ביה שבעת אלפי דינרי סיאנקי אמר זוודאי קלילי ואורחא רחיקתא קם בזבזיה לפלגיה ממוניה היכי עביד הכי והאמר ר' אילעאי באושא התקינו המבזבז אל יבזבז יותר מחומש הני מילי מחיים שמא ירד מנכסיו אבל לאחר מיתה לית לן בה:,רבי אבא הוה צייר זוזי בסודריה ושדי ליה לאחוריה וממצי נפשיה לבי עניי ומצלי עיניה מרמאי,רבי חנינא הוה ההוא עניא דהוה רגיל לשדורי ליה ארבעה זוזי כל מעלי שבתא יומא חד שדרינהו ניהליה ביד דביתהו אתאי אמרה ליה לא צריך מאי חזית שמעי דהוה קאמרי ליה במה אתה סועד | 67b. bwho have cometo appeal to the charity fund bto be marriedoff, the administrators bmarryoff bthe orphan girlfirst band afterwardthey bmarryoff bthe orphan boy, because the humiliation of a womanwho is not married bis greater than that ofan unmarried bman. /b, bThe Sages taught:Concerning ban orphanboy bwho has come to marry,the community tries its utmost to provide for all of his needs. The charities brent a house for him, arrange for him a bed and all his utensils, and thereafterthey bmarry him a wife, as it is stated:“But you shall surely open your hand to him, and shall surely lend him bsufficient for his deficiency in that which is deficient for him”(Deuteronomy 15:8). With regard to the phrase b“sufficient for his deficiency,” thisis referring to bthe house. “Which is deficient”; thisis referring to a bbed and table. “For him [ ilo /i]”; thisis referring to ba wife. And similarlythe verse bstates: “I will make him [ ilo /i] a helpmate for him”(Genesis 2:18), when God created a wife for Adam.,Concerning this issue, bthe Sages taught: “Sufficient for his deficiency”;this teaches that byou are commanded with respect tothe pauper bto support him, but you are not commanded with respect to him to make him wealthy,as the obligation encompasses only that which he lacks, as indicated by the word deficient. However, the verse also states: b“Which is deficient for him”;this includes beven a horse upon which to ride and a servant to run in front of himfor the sake of his stature, if necessary. For someone accustomed to these advantages, their absences constitute a true deficiency, not an extravagant indulgence. The Gemara relates: bThey said about Hillel the Elder that he obtained for a poor person of noble descent a horse upon which to ride and a servant to run in front of him. One time he did not find a servant to run in front of him, andHillel himself bran in front of himfor bthree imil /i,to fulfill the dictate “which is deficient for him.”, bThe Sages taught:There was ban incident involving the people of the Upper Galilee, who bought for a poor person of noble descent fromthe city of bTzippori a ilitraof meat every day.The Gemara asks: If they provided him with the reasonable ration of ba ilitraof meat, what is the noveltyin this incident? Why does it bear repeating? bRav Huna said:It was ba ilitraof meat of poultry,which is very expensive. bAnd if you wish, sayinstead that bforthe weight of ba ilitra /iof coins, they bought him bactualred bmeat.The price of ordinary meat was so expensive that they had to pay the exorbitant price of a ilitraof coins. bRav Ashi saidthey did not spend a ilitraof coins for him. Rather, bthere,in the Galilee, bit was a small village,and bevery day they would losean entire banimaljust bfor him.They would slaughter an animal daily, simply to provide him with fresh meat, although there was otherwise no market for such a plentiful supply of meat in the village.,The Gemara relates another incident concerning charity. bA certainperson bcame before Rabbi Neḥemyato request charity. bHe said to him: On what do younormally bdine? He said to him:I usually dine bon fatty meat and aged wine.Rabbi Neḥemya asked him: bIs it your wish to belittle yourselfand partake together bwith me ina meal of blentils,which is my regular food? bHe partook with him of lentils, and he died,since he was not accustomed to this food. Rabbi Neḥemya bsaid: Woe to this one who was killedby bNeḥemya.The Gemara wonders: bOn the contrary,Rabbi Neḥemya bshould have said: Woe to Neḥemya who killed this one.The Gemara responds: bRather,Rabbi Neḥemya meant that it was bhe,the pauper, bwho should not have pampered himself somuch. The poor man was to blame for his own death. His excessive indulgence rendered him incapable of digesting simple foods such as lentils.,The Gemara relates another story. bA certain person came before Ravato request charity. bHe said to him: On what do younormally bdine? He said to him: On a fattened hen and aged wine. He said to him: And were you not concerned forcausing ba burden to the communityby expecting such opulent foods? bHe said to him: Is that to saythat it is bfrom theirfunds that bI eat? I eat fromthe support of bthe Merciful One.This would seem to be a reasonable argument, bas wealready blearnedthat in the verse b“the eyes of all wait for You, and You give them their food in its time”(Psalms 145:15), the phrase: bAt their time, isnot bstated, rather “in its time.”This bteaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, gives each and every one hispersonally appropriate bsustece at its proper time,and the community is merely His agent in discharging His will. Therefore, the man is justified in maintaining his standard., bIn the meantime,while they were talking, bRava’s sister, who had not seen him for thirteen years, came. Andas a gift, bshe brought him a fattened hen and aged wine. Rava saidto himself: bWhat is this thathappened bin front of methat suddenly I am brought food that I do not usually eat? He then understood that this was a providential response to what he had earlier said to the man. Rava bsaid to him: I have responded [ ina’aneti /i] to yourcontention. bAriseand beat. /b,§ bThe Sages taught:If an individual bdoes not havesufficient means of support band does not want to be supportedfrom charity funds, the charities bprovide himfunds bas a loanin a dignified manner, bandthen they bgo back and givethe funds bto him as a gift;this is bthe statement of Rabbi Meir. And the Rabbis say:They bgive himfunds bas a gift, andthen they bgo back and givethe funds bto him as a loan.The Gemara wonders about the Rabbis’ ruling: How can we give it bas a gift?After all, bhe does notwant to btake itas a gift. The Gemara answers that bRava said:The Rabbis’ instruction is bto begindiscussions bwith himby offering the assistance bas a gift.If he refuses, the charities give it to him as a loan, but they treat it as a gift and refrain from attempting to collect a debt.,If bhe hassufficient funds of his own bbut does not want to support himselfby his own funds without the assistance of charity, the charities bgive himaid bas a gift, and thenthey bgo back and collectthe debt bfrom him.The Gemara asks: How can the administrators of the fund bgo back and collect from him?Would their efforts not be in vain, as bsubsequently he would not taketheir support, knowing that he would still have to pay for it? bRav Pappa said:The charities collect the accrued debt from his estate only bafterhis bdeath.The ibaraitacontinues: bRabbi Shimon says,disputing the opinion of the Rabbis: If bhe hassufficient funds band does not want to be supportedby his own means, they bdo not get involved with him,as the community is not obligated to support him. If bhe does not have and does not want to be supportedfrom charity, the charities bsay to him: Bring collateral and takea loan, bso that his mindset should be raised for him,with the false impression that he is not receiving a handout.,The Gemara cites a dispute related to the previous discussions. bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraitawith regard to the double expression in the Torah: “You shall open your hand to him [ iha’avet ta’avitenu /i]” (Deuteronomy 15:8). b“ iHa’avet /i”; thisis referring to one bwho does not havefunds band does not want to be supportedby charity. The policy is bthatthe charities bprovide himfunds bas a loan and go back and givethe funds bto him as a gift. “ iTa’avitenu /i”; thisis referring to one bwho hasmeans band does not want to supporthimself. The policy is bthatthe charities bprovidemoney bas a gift, and thenthey bgo back and collect fromhis estate bafterhis bdeath.This is bthe statement of Rabbi Yehuda. /b,The ibaraitacontinues: bAnd the Rabbis say:If bhe hasmoney band does not want to supporthimself, they bdo not get involved with him.The ibaraitaasks: bHow then do I upholdthe double expression b“ iha’avet ta’avitenu /i”?The ibaraitaanswers: bThe Torah spoke in the language of men,and the double form does not have halakhic significance.,The Gemara recounts another incident related to charity. bMar Ukvahad ba pauper in his neighborhood,and Mar Ukva bwas accustomed every day to toss four dinars for him into theslot adjacent to the bhinge of the door. One daythe poor person bsaid: I will goand bsee who is doing this service for me. That day Mar Ukva was delayed in the study hall,and bhis wife came with himto distribute the charity., bWhenthe people in the poor man’s house bsaw thatsomeone bwas turning the door,the pauper bwent out after themto see who it was. Mar Ukva and his wife branaway bfrom before himso that he would not determine their identity, and bthey entered a certain furnace whose fire wasalready brakedover and tempered but was still burning. bMar Ukva’s legs were being singed,and bhis wife said to him: Raise your legs and set them on my legs,which are not burned. Understanding that only his wife was spared from burns, because she was more worthy, Mar Ukva bbecame distraught.By way of explanation, bshe said to him: I amnormally bfound inside the house, andwhen I give charity, bmy assistance is readyand immediate, insofar as I distribute actual food items. Since you distribute money, which is not as readily helpful, my aid is greater than yours.,The Gemara asks: bAnd whatis ball this?Why did they go to such extreme lengths to avoid being discovered? The Gemara answers: It is bas Mar Zutra bar Toviya saidthat bRav said, and some saythat bRav Huna bar Bizna saidthat bRabbi Shimon Ḥasida said, and some saythat bRabbi Yoḥa said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: It is preferable for a person to deliver himself into a fiery furnace so thathe bnot whitenthe bfaceof, i.e., embarrass, bhis friend in public. From where do wederive this? bFrom theconduct of bTamar, as it is written:“And Judah said: Bring her forth, and let her be burnt. When bshe was brought forth,she sent to her father-in-law, saying: By the man, whose these are, am I with child” (Genesis 38:24–25). Although Tamar was taken to be executed by burning, she privately and directly appealed to Judah, rather than publicly identifying him as the father of her unborn children and causing him embarrassment.,The Gemara relates another incident involving Mar Ukva. bMar Ukvahad another bpauper in his neighborhood,and Mar Ukva bwas accustomed to send to him four hundred dinars everyyear on the beve of Yom Kippur. One day he sentthe money bto him by the hand of his son.The son breturnedand bsaid to him:The poor individual bdoes not needthe charity. Mar Ukva bsaid: What did you seethat prompted you to say this? He said to him: bI saw them spilling old wineon the ground bfor him,to give the room a pleasant smell. Mar Ukva bsaid:If he is bpampered this muchand requires even this luxury, then he needs even more money. bHe doubledthe funds band sent them to him. /b, bWhenMar Ukva bwas dying, he said: Bring me my charity records. He found that it was written therethat he had given bseven thousandfine, isiankei /i,i.e., gold, bdinars,to charity. bHe said: My provisions are light, and the way is far.This meager sum is insufficient for me to merit the World-to-Come. bHe got upand bspent halfof bhisremaining bmoneyon charity. The Gemara asks: bHow did he do this? But didn’t Rabbi Ilai say: In Usha they instituted: One who spendsmoney on charity, bhe should not spend more than one-fifthof his money for this purpose. The Gemara answers: bThisrestriction on giving too much charity bappliesonly bwhile he is alive,because bperhaps he will descend from his holdingsand become destitute. Therefore, for his own ficial security, he should never distribute more than one-fifth. bBut after death, we have noproblem bwith it.One need not save money in his estate anymore.,The Gemara recounts more stories related to charity. bRabbi Abba would wrap coins in his scarf and tossthe money bbehind himover his shoulder. bAndhe bwould place himself at the homes of the poorwithout being seen, so the poor could receive the aid without being embarrassed. bAnd he would incline his eyesjust enough so he could safeguard the handouts bfrom swindlerswho might take the money dishonestly., bRabbi Ḥaninaknew ba certain pauperand bwas accustomed to send to him four dinarson bevery Shabbat eve. One day he sent it in the hand of his wife. She cameback home and bsaid to him:The man bdoes not needcharity. Rabbi Ḥanina asked her: bWhat did you seethat prompted you to say this? She said to him: bI heard them saying to himinside the house: bWith what do younormally bdine: /b |
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24. Babylonian Talmud, Megillah, 29a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 29a. מבטלין ת"ת להוצאת המת ולהכנסת הכלה אמרו עליו על ר' יהודה בר' אילעאי שהיה מבטל ת"ת להוצאת המת ולהכנסת הכלה בד"א בשאין שם כל צורכו אבל יש שם כל צורכו אין מבטלין,וכמה כל צורכו אמר רב שמואל בר איניא משמיה דרב תריסר אלפי גברי ושיתא אלפי שיפורי ואמרי לה תריסר אלפי גברי ומינייהו שיתא אלפי שיפורי עולא אמר כגון דחייצי גברי מאבולא עד סיכרא,רב ששת אמר כנתינתה כך נטילתה מה נתינתה בששים ריבוא אף נטילתה בס' ריבוא ה"מ למאן דקרי ותני אבל למאן דמתני לית ליה שיעורא,תניא ר"ש בן יוחי אומר בוא וראה כמה חביבין ישראל לפני הקב"ה שבכל מקום שגלו שכינה עמהן גלו למצרים שכינה עמהן שנאמר (שמואל א ב, כז) הנגלה נגליתי לבית אביך בהיותם במצרים וגו' גלו לבבל שכינה עמהן שנאמר (ישעיהו מג, יד) למענכם שלחתי בבלה ואף כשהן עתידין ליגאל שכינה עמהן שנאמר (דברים ל, ג) ושב ה' אלהיך את שבותך והשיב לא נאמר אלא ושב מלמד שהקב"ה שב עמהן מבין הגליות,בבבל היכא אמר אביי בבי כנישתא דהוצל ובבי כנישתא דשף ויתיב בנהרדעא ולא תימא הכא והכא אלא זמנין הכא וזמנין הכא אמר אביי תיתי לי דכי מרחיקנא פרסה עיילנא ומצלינא התם אבוה דשמואל [ולוי] הוו יתבי בכנישתא דשף ויתיב בנהרדעא אתיא שכינה שמעו קול ריגשא [קמו ונפקו,רב ששת הוה יתיב בבי כנישתא דשף ויתיב בנהרדעא אתיא שכינה] ולא נפק אתו מלאכי השרת וקא מבעתו ליה אמר לפניו רבש"ע עלוב ושאינו עלוב מי נדחה מפני מי אמר להו שבקוהו,(יחזקאל יא, טז) ואהי להם למקדש מעט אמר רבי יצחק אלו בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות שבבבל ור"א אמר זה בית רבינו שבבבל,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (תהלים צ, א) ה' מעון אתה היית לנו אלו בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות אמר אביי מריש הואי גריסנא בביתא ומצלינא בבי כנשתא כיון דשמעית להא דקאמר דוד (תהלים כו, ח) ה' אהבתי מעון ביתך הואי גריסנא בבי כנישתא,תניא ר"א הקפר אומר עתידין בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות שבבבל שיקבעו בא"י שנאמר (ירמיהו מו, יח) כי כתבור בהרים וככרמל בים יבא והלא דברים ק"ו ומה תבור וכרמל שלא באו אלא לפי שעה ללמוד תורה נקבעים בארץ ישראל בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות שקורין ומרביצין בהן תורה עאכ"ו,דרש בר קפרא מאי דכתיב (תהלים סח, יז) למה תרצדון הרים גבנונים יצתה בת קול ואמרה להם למה תרצו דין עם סיני כולכם בעלי מומים אתם אצל סיני כתיב הכא גבנונים וכתיב התם (ויקרא כא, כ) או גבן או דק אמר רב אשי ש"מ האי מאן דיהיר בעל מום הוא:,אין עושין אותו קפנדריא: מאי קפנדריא אמר רבא קפנדריא כשמה מאי כשמה כמאן דאמר אדמקיפנא אדרי איעול בהא,א"ר אבהו אם היה שביל מעיקרא מותר,אר"נ בר יצחק הנכנס ע"מ שלא לעשות קפנדריא מותר לעשותו קפנדריא וא"ר חלבו אמר ר"ה הנכנס לבהכ"נ להתפלל מותר לעשותו קפנדריא שנא' (יחזקאל מו, ט) ובבא עם הארץ לפני ה' במועדים הבא דרך שער צפון להשתחוות יצא דרך שער נגב:,עלו בו עשבים לא יתלוש מפני עגמת נפש: והתניא אינו תולש ומאכיל אבל תולש ומניח כי תנן נמי מתני' תולש ומאכיל תנן,ת"ר בית הקברות אין נוהגין בהן קלות ראש אין מרעין בהן בהמה ואין מוליכין בהן אמת המים ואין מלקטין בהן עשבים ואם ליקט שורפן במקומן מפני כבוד מתים,אהייא אילימא אסיפא כיון ששורפן במקומן מאי כבוד מתים איכא אלא ארישא:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big ר"ח אדר שחל להיות בשבת קורין בפרשת שקלים חל להיות בתוך השבת מקדימין לשעבר ומפסיקין לשבת אחרת,בשניה זכור בשלישית פרה אדומה ברביעית החודש הזה לכם בחמישית חוזרין לכסדרן,לכל מפסיקין בראשי חדשים בחנוכה ובפורים בתעניות ובמעמדות וביוה"כ:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big תנן התם באחד באדר משמיעין על השקלים | 29a. bOne interruptshis bTorah study to carry out the deadfor burial band to escort a brideto her wedding. bThey said about Rabbi Yehuda, son of Rabbi Elai, that he would interrupthis bTorah study to carry out the deadfor burial band to escort a brideto her wedding. The Gemara qualifies this ruling: bIn whatcase bis this statement said?Only bwhere there are not sufficientnumbers of other people available to perform these mitzvot and honor the deceased or the bride appropriately. bHowever,when bthere are sufficientnumbers, additional people bshould not interrupttheir Torah study to participate.,The Gemara asks: bAnd how manypeople bareconsidered bsufficient? Rav Shmuel bar Inya said in the name of Rav: Twelve thousand men andanother bsix thousandmen to blow bhornsas a sign of mourning. bAnd some saya different version: bTwelve thousand men, among whom are six thousandmen with bhorns. Ulla said: For example,enough bto make a procession of peopleall the way bfrom thetown bgate [ iabbula /i] to the place of burial. /b, bRav Sheshet said: Asthe Torah bwas given, so itshould be btaken away,i.e., the same honor that was provided when the Torah was given at Mount Sinai should be provided when the Torah is taken through the passing away of a Torah scholar. bJust asthe Torah bwas given in the presence of six hundred thousandmen, bso too its takingshould be done bin the presence of six hundred thousandmen. The Gemara comments: bThis applies to someone who readthe Bible band studied ihalakhotfor himself. bBut for someone who taughtothers, bthere is no limitto the honor that should be shown to him.,§ bIt is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Come and see how beloved the Jewish people are before the Holy One, Blessed be He. As every place they were exiled, the Divine Presencewent bwith them. They were exiled to Egypt,and bthe Divine Presencewent bwith them, as it is stated: “Did I reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt?”(I Samuel 2:27). bThey were exiled to Babylonia,and bthe Divine Presencewent bwith them, as it is stated: “For your sake I have sent to Babylonia”(Isaiah 43:14). bSo too, when, in the future, they will be redeemed, the Divine Presence will be with them, as it is stated: “Then the Lord your God will return with your captivity”(Deuteronomy 30:3). bIt does not state: He will bring back,i.e., He will cause the Jewish people to return, bbut ratherit says: b“He will return,”which bteaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, will returntogether bwith them from among thevarious bexiles. /b,The Gemara asks: bWhere in Babyloniadoes the Divine Presence reside? bAbaye said: In theancient bsynagogue of Huzal and in the synagogue that was destroyed and rebuilt in Neharde’a. And do not saythat the Divine Presence resided bhere and there,i.e., in both places simultaneously. bRather, at timesit resided bherein Huzal band at times therein Neharde’a. bAbaye said: I havea blessing bcoming to me, for whenever I amwithin ba distance of a parasangfrom one of those synagogues, bI go in and pray there,due to the special honor and sanctity attached to them. It was related that bthe father of Shmuel and Levi wereonce bsitting in the synagogue that was destroyed and rebuilt in Neharde’a. The Divine Presence cameand bthey heard a loud sound,so bthey arose and left. /b,It was further related that bRav Sheshet wasonce bsitting in the synagogue that was destroyed and rebuilt in Neharde’a,and bthe Divine Presence came but he did not go out. The ministering angels came and were frightening himin order to force him to leave. Rav Sheshet turned to God and bsaid before Him: Master of the Universe,if one is bwretched andthe other is bnot wretched, who should defer to whom?Shouldn’t the one who is not wretched give way to the one who is? Now I am blind and wretched; why then do you expect me to defer to the angels? God then turned to the angels and bsaid to them: Leave him. /b,The verse states: b“Yet I have been to them as a little sanctuaryin the countries where they have come” (Ezekiel 11:16). bRabbi Yitzḥak said: Thisis referring to bthe synagogues and study halls in Babylonia. And Rabbi Elazar said: Thisis referring to bthe house of our master,i.e., Rav, bin Babylonia,from which Torah issues forth to the entire world., bRava interpreteda verse bhomiletically: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “Lord, You have been our dwelling placein all generations” (Psalms 90:1)? bThisis referring to bthe synagogues and study halls. Abaye said: Initially, I used to studyTorah binmy bhome and pray in the synagogue. Once I heardand understood bthat whichKing bDavid says: “Lord, I love the habitation of Your house”(Psalms 26:8), bI wouldalways bstudyTorah bin the synagogue,to express my love for the place in which the Divine Presence resides., bIt is taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbi Elazar HaKappar says: In the future, the synagogues and the study halls in Babylonia will betransported and breestablished in Eretz Yisrael, as it is stated: “Surely, like Tabor among the mountains, and like Carmel by the sea, so shall he come”(Jeremiah 46:18). There is a tradition that these mountains came to Sinai at the giving of the Torah and demanded that the Torah should be given upon them. bAnd arethese bmatters notinferred through an ia fortiori /iargument: bJust as Tabor and Carmel, which came only momentarily to study Torah, wererelocated and bestablished in Eretz Yisraelin reward for their actions, ball the more soshould bthe synagogues and study hallsin Babylonia, bin which the Torah is read and disseminated,be relocated to Eretz Yisrael., bBar Kappara interpreteda verse bhomiletically: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “Why do you look askance [ iteratzdun /i], O high-peaked mountains,at the mountain that God has desired for His abode” (Psalms 68:17)? bA Divine Voice issued forth and said toall the mountains that came and demanded that the Torah be given upon them: bWhy do you seek [ itirtzu /i]to enter into ba legal dispute [ idin /i] withMount bSinai? You are all blemished in comparison toMount bSinai,as bit is written here: “High-peaked [ igavnunnim /i]” and it is written there,with regard to the blemishes that disqualify a priest: b“Or crookbacked [ igibben /i] or a dwarf”(Leviticus 21:20). bRav Ashi said: Learn fromthis that bone who is arrogant isconsidered bblemished.The other mountains arrogantly insisted that the Torah should be given upon them, and they were therefore described as blemished.,§ The mishna teaches that even if a synagogue fell into ruin, bit may not be madeinto ba ikappendarya /i.The Gemara asks: bWhat ismeant by ikappendarya /i? Rava said: A shortcut, asimplied by bits name.The Gemara clarifies: bWhatdo you mean by adding: bAsimplied by bits name?It is blike one who said: Instead of going around theentire row of bhouses [ imakkifna addari /i]to get to the other side, thereby lengthening my journey, bI will enter thishouse and walk through it to the other side. The word ikappendaryasounds like a contraction of imakkifna addari /i. This is what Rava meant by saying: As implied by its name., bRabbi Abbahu said: Ifa public bpath had initiallypassed through that location, before the synagogue was built, bit is permittedto continue to use it as a shortcut, for the honor due to a synagogue cannot annul the public’s right of access to the path., bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said:With regard to bone who entersa synagogue bwithout intending to make itinto ba shortcut,when he leaves bhe is permitted to make itinto ba shortcutfor himself, by leaving through the exit on the other side of the building. bAnd Rabbi Ḥelbo saidthat bRav Huna said:With regard to bone who enters a synagogue to pray, he is permitted to make itinto ba shortcutfor himself by leaving through a different exit, and it is fitting to do so, bas it is stated: “And when the people of the land shall come before the Lord in the appointed seasons, he that enters by way of the north gate to bow down shall go forth by the way of the south gate”(Ezekiel 46:9). This indicates that it is a show of respect not to leave through the same entrance through which one came in; it is better to leave through the other side.,§ The mishna teaches: If bgrass sprang up ina ruined synagogue, although it is not befitting its sanctity, bone should not pickit, bdue tothe banguishthat it will cause to those who see it. It will remind them of the disrepair of the synagogue and the need to rebuild it. The Gemara asks: bBut isn’t it taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne may not pickthe grass band feedit to one’s animals, bbut he may pickit band leaveit there? The Gemara answers: bWhen we learnedthe prohibition against picking the grass in bthe mishna as well, we learnedonly that it is prohibited to bpickit and bfeedit to one’s animals, but it is permitted to leave it there., bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: In ba cemetery, one may not act with frivolity; one may not graze an animalon the grass growing binside it; and one may not direct a water channelto pass bthrough it; and one may not gather grass inside itto use the grass as feed for one’s animals; band if one gatheredgrass for that purpose, bit should be burnt on the spot, out of respect for the dead. /b,The Gemara clarifies: With regard to the phrase: Out of respect for the dead, bto whichclause of the ibaraitadoes it refer? bIf we sayit is referring bto the last clause,that if one gathered grass that it should be burnt out of respect for the dead, then one could ask: bSincethe grass bis burnt on the spot,and not publicly, bwhat respect for the dead is therein this act? bRather,the phrase must be referring bto the first clauseof the ibaraita /i, and it explains why it is prohibited to act with frivolity., strongMISHNA: /strong On four iShabbatotduring and surrounding the month of Adar, a Torah portion of seasonal significance is read. When bthe New Moon of Adar occurs on Shabbat,the congregation breads the portion of iShekalim /ion that Shabbat. If the New Moon boccurs duringthe middle of bthe week, they advancethe reading of that portion bto the previousShabbat, band,in such a case, bthey interruptthe reading of the four portions bon the following Shabbat,which would be the first Shabbat of the month of Adar, and no additional portion is read on it., bOn the secondShabbat, the Shabbat prior to Purim, they read the portion: b“Rememberwhat Amalek did” (Deuteronomy 25:17–19), which details the mitzva to remember and destroy the nation of Amalek. bOn the thirdShabbat, they read the portion of bthe Red Heifer [ iPara /i](Numbers 19:1–22), which details the purification process for one who became ritually impure through contact with a corpse. bOn the fourthShabbat, they read the portion: b“This month [ ihaḥodesh /i] shall be for you”(Exodus 12:1–20), which describes the offering of the Paschal lamb. bOn the fifthShabbat, bthey resume theregular weekly borderof readings and no special portion is read., bFor allspecial days, the congregation binterruptsthe regular weekly order of readings, and a special portion relating to the character of the day is read. This applies bon the New Moons, on Hanukkah, and on Purim, on fast days, and on thenon-priestly bwatches, and on Yom Kippur. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong bWe learnedin a mishna bthere( iShekalim1:1): bOn the first of Adar they makea public bannouncement concerningthe forthcoming collection of half- bshekels.The money is used for the communal offerings in the Temple in the coming year. |
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25. Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim, 81a, 39b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
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26. Babylonian Talmud, Pesahim, 113b, 49b, 54a, 56a, 112a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 112a. דמסוכר ולא משי ידיה מפחיד שבעה יומי דשקיל מזייה ולא משי ידיה מפחיד תלתא יומי דשקיל טופריה ולא משי ידיה מפחיד חד יומא ולא ידע מאי קא מפחיד ידא אאוסיא דרגא לפחדא ידא אפותא דרגא לשינתא,תנא אוכלין ומשקין תחת המטה אפילו מחופין בכלי ברזל רוח רעה שורה עליהן ת"ר לא ישתה אדם מים לא בלילי רביעיות ולא בלילי שבתות ואם שתה דמו בראשו מפני סכנה מאי סכנה רוח רעה,ואם צחי מאי תקנתיה (נימא) שבעה קולות שאמר דוד על המים והדר נישתי שנאמר (תהלים כט, ג) קול ה' על המים אל הכבוד הרעים ה' על מים רבים קול ה' בכח קול ה' בהדר קול ה' שובר ארזים וישבר ה' את ארזי הלבנון קול ה' חוצב להבות אש קול ה' יחיל מדבר יחיל ה' מדבר קדש קול ה' יחולל אילות ויחשוף יערות ובהיכלו כולו אומר כבוד,ואי לא (נימא) הכי לול שפן אניגרון אנירדפין בין כוכבי יתיבנא בין בליעי שמיני אזילנא ואי לא אי איכא איניש בהדיה ניתעריה ולימא ליה פלניא בר פלנתא צחינא מיא והדר נישתי ואי לא מקרקש נכתמא אחצבא והדר נישתי ואי לא נישדי בה מידי והדר נישתי,ת"ר לא ישתה אדם מים לא מן הנהרות ולא מן האגמים בלילה ואם שתה דמו בראשו מפני הסכנה מאי סכנה סכנת שברירי ואי צחי מאי תקנתיה אי איכא איניש בהדיה לימא ליה פלניא בר פלנתא צחינא מיא ואי לא (נימא) איהו לנפשיה פלניא אמרה לי אימי איזדהר משברירי שברירי ברירי רירי ירי רי צחינא מיא בכסי חיורי:,ואפילו מן התמחוי וכו': פשיטא,לא נצרכא אלא אפילו לר"ע דאמר עשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות הכא משום פרסומי ניסא (מודי),תנא דבי אליהו אע"פ שאמר ר"ע עשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות אבל עושה הוא דבר מועט בתוך ביתו מאי נינהו אמר רב פפא כסא דהרסנא כדתנן ר' יהודה בן תימא אומר הוי עז כנמר וקל כנשר רץ כצבי וגבור כארי לעשות רצון אביך שבשמים,ת"ר שבעה דברים צוה ר"ע את רבי יהושע בנו בני אל תשב בגובהה של עיר ותשנה ואל תדור בעיר שראשיה תלמידי חכמים,ואל תכנס לביתך פתאום כ"ש לבית חבירך ואל תמנע מנעלים מרגליך השכם ואכול בקיץ מפני החמה ובחורף מפני הצינה ועשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות והוי משתדל עם אדם שהשעה משחקת לו,אמר רב פפא לא למיזבן מיניה ולא לזבוני ליה אלא למעבד שותפות בהדיה והשתא דאמר רב שמואל בר יצחק מאי דכתיב (איוב א, י) מעשה ידיו ברכת כל הנוטל פרוטה מאיוב מתברך אפילו למיזבן מיניה ולזבוני ליה שפיר דמי,חמשה דברים צוה ר"ע את רבי שמעון בן יוחי כשהיה חבוש בבית האסורין אמר לו רבי למדני תורה אמר איני מלמדך אמר לו אם אין אתה מלמדני אני אומר ליוחי אבא ומוסרך למלכות אמר לו בני יותר ממה שהעגל רוצה לינק פרה רוצה להניק אמר לו ומי בסכנה והלא עגל בסכנה,אמר לו אם בקשת ליחנק היתלה באילן גדול וכשאתה מלמד את בנך למדהו בספר מוגה מאי היא אמר רבא ואיתימא רב משרשיא בחדתא שבשתא כיון דעל על,לא תבשל בקדירה שבישל בה חבירך מאי ניהו גרושה בחיי בעלה דאמר מר גרוש שנשא גרושה ארבע דעות במטה ואי בעית אימא אפילו באלמנה לפי | 112a. One bwho lets blood and does not wash his hands will be afraid for seven days.One bwho cuts his hair and does not wash his hands will be afraid for three days.One bwho cuts his nails and does not wash his hands will be afraid for one day, and he will not know what is frighteninghim. Placing one’s bhand onhis bnostrilsis ba way tobecome bafraid.Placing one’s bhand on his forehead is a wayto fall basleep. /b,A Sage btaught:If bfood and drinkare bunderone’s bbed, even if they are covered with iron vessels, an evil spirit rests upon them. The Sages taught: A personshould bnot drink water on Tuesday nights or on Shabbat nights,i.e., Friday nights. bAnd if he drinkswater, bhis blood is upon hisown bhead, due tothe bdanger.The Gemara asks: bWhat isthis bdanger?The Gemara answers: The danger of the bevil spiritthat rules on these days.,The Gemara asks: bAnd if he is thirsty, what is his remedy?What should he drink? The Gemara answers: bHeshould bsaythe bseven voices that David said over the water, and afterward hemay bdrink. As it is stated: “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; God of glory thunders, even the Lord upon many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.He makes them also skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild ox. bThe voice of the Lord hews out flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the hinds to calve, and strips the forests bare; and in His temple all say: Glory”(Psalms 29:3–9)., bAnd ifhe does bnotremember that verse, bheshould bsay as follows: Lul, Shafan, Anigron, Anirdafin,which are names of demons, bI sit between the stars, I walk between thinand bfatpeople, take any of them if you wish but leave me alone. bAnd ifhe does bnotrecall this incantation, bif there isanother bperson with him, heshould bwake him and say to him: So-and-so, son of so-and-so, I thirst for water; and thenhe may bdrink. And ifthere is bnoother person with him, he should bknock the cover on the cup and then drink. And ifhe is bnotable to do this, bheshould bthrow someobject bin it and then drink. /b, bThe Sages taught: A personshould bnot drink water from rivers or from ponds at night. And if he drank, his blood is upon hisown bhead due to the danger.The Gemara explains: bWhat isthis bdanger? The danger of blindness.The Gemara asks: bAnd if he is thirsty, what is his remedy? If there isanother bperson with him, heshould bsay to him: So-and-so, son of so-and-so, I thirst for water. And ifthere is bnoone else with him, bheshould bsay to himself: So-and-so, my mother said to meto bbeware of ishavrirei /i,the demon of blindness. He should continue to say the following incantation, in the first part of which the demon’s name gradually disappears: iShavrirei berirei rirei yiri ri /i; I thirst for water in whiteearthenware bcups.This is an incantation against those demons.,The Gemara returns to the statement of the mishna that on Passover one must drink no less than four cups of wine: bAndthis ihalakhaapplies bevenif the poor person accepts funds bfrom the charity plate.The Gemara asks: It is bobviousthat this is the case. If there is a mitzva to drink these four cups, they must be provided for him.,The Gemara answers: The mishna bis necessary onlyto teach that this ihalakhaapplies beven according tothe opinion of bRabbi Akiva, who said: Make your Shabbatlike an ordinary bweekday and do not be beholden toother bbeings.If one is unable to honor Shabbat without ficial help from others, it is better for him to save money and eat his Shabbat meals as he would on a weekday rather than rely on other people. bHere,in the case of the four cups, Rabbi Akiva bconcedesthat it is appropriate for a poor person to request assistance from the community, bdue tothe obligation bto publicize the miracle. /b,With regard to this issue, bthe school of Eliyahu taughtthat balthough Rabbi Akiva said: Make your Shabbatlike ba weekday and do not be beholden toother bbeings; however, oneshould nevertheless bperform some smallalteration bin his houseto distinguish Shabbat from a weekday. The Gemara asks: bWhatis bthisalteration? bRav Pappa said:For example, one should serve bsmall, fried fish. As we learnedin a mishna: bRabbi Yehuda ben Teima says: Be bold like a leopard, light like an eagle, run like a deer, andbe bstrong like a lion to perform the will of your Father in Heaven.This statement teaches that one should exert every effort to perform a mitzva.,The Gemara cites the full source of Rabbi’s Akiva statement with regard to Shabbat preparations. bThe Sages taught: Rabbi Akiva commanded Rabbi Yehoshua, his son,about bseven matters: My son, do not sit at the high point of a city,where many people pass, band studythere, as the passersby will interrupt you. bAnd do not live in a city whose leaders are Torah scholars,as they are too busy studying to govern properly.,Rabbi Akiva continued: bAnd do not enter your house suddenly,without knocking first; ball the more sodo not enter bthe house of another,as he might not be ready to receive you. bAnd do not withhold shoes from your feet,as it is disgraceful to go barefoot. bWake up and eat, in the summer due to the heat,as it is best to eat before it grows hot, band in the winter due tothe strength you will need to tolerate bthe cold. And make your Shabbatlike ba weekday and do not be beholden toother bbeings. And exert yourselfto join together bwith a person upon whom the hour smiles,i.e., a successful person., bRav Pappa saidin explanation of this last statement: bDo not buy from him and do not sell to him.If he is the beneficiary of good fortune, he will profit from any business transaction and you will suffer from it. bRather, form a partnership with him. And nowwe have heard bthat Rav Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: Whatis the meaning of that bwhich is written: “You have blessed the work of his hands”(Job 1:10)? This means that banyone who took a iperutafrom Job would be blessed,even if he received it via a business transaction. This shows that one should engage in business with a person who is blessed, for beven ifhe wishes bto buy from him or to sell to him it is well,i.e., he will share in the good fortune of the other.,The Gemara continues to cite similar advice dispensed by Rabbi Akiva. bRabbi Akiva commanded Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥaito do bfive matters whenRabbi Akiva bwas imprisoned.Beforehand, Rabbi Shimon bsaid to him: Rabbi, teach me Torah.Rabbi Akiva bsaidto him: bI will not teach you,as it is dangerous to do so at the present time. Rabbi Shimon bsaid to himin jest: bIf you will not teach me, I will tell Yoḥaimy bfather, and he will turn you over to the government.In other words, I have no means of persuading you; you are already in prison. Rabbi Akiva bsaid: My son,know that bmore than the calf wishes to suck, the cow wants to suckle,but I am afraid of the danger. Rabbi Shimon bsaid to him: And who is in danger? Isn’t the calf in danger,as you are in jail and I am the one at risk?,Rabbi Akiva bsaid to him:If so, I will tell you a few matters. First of all, bif you wish to strangle yourself, hang yourself on a tall tree.This proverb means that if one wants others to accept what he has to say, he should attribute his statement to a great man. bAnd when you teach your son, teach him from a corrected text.The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning of bthatstatement? bRava said, and some say Rav Mesharshiyasaid: Rabbi Akiva was referring btolearning ba newtopic, for bonce a mistake entersone’s mind, it has benteredthere and is difficult to put right.,Rabbi Akiva further told Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: bDo not cook in a pot in which your colleague cookedhis food. The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning of bthisstatement? The Gemara explains: Rabbi Akiva is referring to marrying ba divorced woman in the lifetime of herformer bhusband. As the Master said:If ba divorced man marries a divorced woman, there are four minds in the bedduring intimacy. Each person thinks about his current and former spouse, which verges on illegitimacy. bAnd if you wish, sayinstead that this advice holds true beven with regard tomarrying ba widow, as /b |
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27. Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat, 32a, 127a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 127a. כדאמרי אינשי ואי בעי אפילו טובא נמי מפנין ומאי אבל לא את האוצר שלא יגמור כולו דילמא אתי לאשוויי גומות אבל אתחולי מתחיל ומני ר"ש היא דלית ליה מוקצה,ת"ר אין מתחילין באוצר תחילה אבל עושה בו שביל כדי שיכנס ויצא עושה בו שביל והא אמרת אין מתחילין הכי קאמר עושה בו שביל ברגליו בכניסתו וביציאתו,תנו רבנן תבואה צבורה בזמן שהתחיל בה מע"ש מותר להסתפק ממנה בשבת ואם לאו אסור להסתפק ממנה בשבת דברי ר"ש ר' אחא מתיר כלפי לייא אלא אימא דברי ר' אחא ורבי שמעון מתיר,תנא כמה שיעור תבואה צבורה לתך בעא מיניה רב נחומי בר זכריה מאביי שיעור תבואה צבורה בכמה אמר ליה הרי אמרו שיעור תבואה צבורה לתך,איבעיא להו הני ארבע וחמש קופות דקאמר בארבע וחמש קופות אין טפי לא אלמא למעוטי בהילוכא עדיף או דילמא למעוטי משוי עדיף,ת"ש דתני חדא מפנין אפילו ארבע וחמש קופות של כדי שמן ושל כדי יין ותניא אידך בעשר ובחמש עשרה מאי לאו בהא קמיפלגי דמר סבר מעוטי בהילוכא עדיף ומר סבר מעוטי במשוי עדיף,לא דכ"ע מעוטי בהילוכא עדיף ומי סברת בעשר ובחמש עשרה אקופות קאי אכדין קאי ולא קשיא הא דמשתקלי חד חד בקופה והא דמישתקלי תרי תרי והא דמשתקלי תלתא תלתא ובדקורי דהרפניא,איבעיא להו הני ארבע וחמש דקאמר אע"ג דאית ליה אורחין טובא או דילמא הכל לפי האורחין ואת"ל הכל לפי האורחין חד גברא מפני לכולהו או דילמא גברא גברא מפני לנפשיה,ת"ש דאמר רבה אמר רבי חייא פעם אחת הלך רבי למקום אחד וראה מקום דחוק לתלמידים ויצא לשדה ומצא שדה מלאה עומרים ועימר רבי כל השדה כולה (שמע מינה הכל לפי האורחין),ורב יוסף א"ר הושעיא פעם אחת הלך ר' חייא למקום אחד וראה מקום דחוק לתלמידים ויצא לשדה ומצא שדה מלאה עומרים ועימר ר' חייא כל השדה כולה שמע מינה הכל לפי האורחין,ועדיין תבעי לך חד גברא מפני ליה לכולא או דילמא כל גברא וגברא מפני לנפשיה,ת"ש ועימר רבי ולטעמיך רבי בדנפשיה עימר אלא צוה ועימר ולעולם כל חד וחד מפני לנפשיה:,מפני האורחין וכו': א"ר יוחנן גדולה הכנסת אורחין כהשכמת בית המדרש דקתני מפני האורחין ומפני בטול בית המדרש ורב דימי מנהרדעא אמר יותר מהשכמת בית המדרש דקתני מפני האורחין והדר ומפני בטול בית המדרש אמר רב יהודה אמר רב גדולה הכנסת אורחין מהקבלת פני שכינה דכתיב (בראשית יח, ג) ויאמר (ה') אם נא מצאתי חן בעיניך אל נא תעבור וגו' א"ר אלעזר בא וראה שלא כמדת הקב"ה מדת בשר ודם מדת ב"ו אין קטן יכול לומר לגדול המתן עד שאבא אצלך ואילו בהקדוש ברוך הוא כתיב ויאמר (ה') אם נא מצאתי וגו',אמר רב יהודה בר שילא א"ר אסי א"ר יוחנן ששה דברים אדם אוכל פירותיהן בעולם הזה והקרן קיימת לו לעולם הבא ואלו הן הכנסת אורחין וביקור חולים ועיון תפלה והשכמת בית המדרש והמגדל בניו לתלמוד תורה והדן את חברו לכף זכות,איני והא אנן) תנן אלו דברים שאדם עושה אותם ואוכל פירותיהן בעולם הזה והקרן קיימת לו לעולם הבא ואלו הן כיבוד אב ואם וגמילות חסדים והבאת שלום שבין אדם לחברו ות"ת כנגד כולם) [הני אין מידי אחרינא לא] | 127a. bas peoplewho are not so precise in their formulation bsay:Four or five. bAnd if oneso bdesires, he may clear even more. And whatthen is the meaning of: bHowever,one may bnotmove these items to create space in bthe storeroom?It means bthat one may not finishmoving the baskets out of the bentirestoreroom, blest he come to levelthe floor by filling the bholes. However, one may beginremoving baskets from the storeroom. bAnd whoseopinion is cited in this mishna? It is the opinion of bRabbi Shimon, who is notof the opinion that there is a prohibition of bset-aside. /b, bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne may notuse bthe storeroomfor the bfirst time.If one has never taken supplies from this storeroom, he may not begin moving baskets from it. bHowever, he makes a path in it, so that he willbe able to benter and exit.The Gemara asks: He bmakes a path in it? Did you not say: One may notuse bthe storeroomfor the bfirst time?The Gemara answers that the ibaraita bis saying as follows: He makes a path in itby moving baskets bwith his feet, as he entersthe storehouse band as he exits.He may not move the basket with his hand., bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: With regard to bpiled grain, if one had startedto take grain from the pile bon Shabbat eve, it is permitted to satisfy his needs from it on Shabbat, and if not, it is prohibited to satisfy his needs from it on Shabbat;this is bthe statement of Rabbi Shimon. Rabbi Aḥa permitsdoing so in any case. The Gemara raises a difficulty: bOn the contrary;it is Rabbi Shimon who is lenient with regard to the ihalakhotof set-aside. bRather,emend the ibaraitaand bsay:This is bthe statement of Rabbi Aḥa. Rabbi Shimon permitsdoing so in any case., bIt was taught: How much isthe bmeasure of piled grainneeded to confer the legal status of a storeroom? bA half-kor. Rav Naḥumi bar Zekharya raised a dilemma before Abaye:The bmeasure of piled grain, how muchis it? Abaye said to him that bthey said: The measure of piled grain is a half- ikor /i. /b, bA dilemma was raised beforethe Sages: bThese four or five baskets, whichthe itanna bstatedin the mishna, is he saying the following: bFour or five baskets, yes,one may move them, bmorebaskets, bno,one may not move them? This would indicate bthat it is preferable to minimizethe bwalkingdistance because fewer baskets results in less walking in and out of the storeroom. bOr perhaps it is preferable to minimizethe size of the bburdenby carrying smaller baskets, as long as the total measure of all that one carries does not exceed the capacity of five large baskets?, bComeand bheara resolution to this dilemma, bas one ibaraita btaught: Onemay bmove even four or five basketscontaining bjugs of oil and jugs of wine. And it was taughtin banother ibaraita /i: One may move them even bin ten and in fifteenbaskets. bWhat, is it not thatthe two ibaraitot bdisagreeconcerning bthe followingmatter, bas this Sagein the first ibaraita bholdsthat bit is preferable to minimizethe bwalkingdistance by moving fewer, heavier baskets, band this Sagein the second ibaraita bholdsthat bit is preferable to minimizethe size of the bburdenby moving lighter baskets over the course of several trips.,The Gemara rejects this: bNo, everyone agrees that it is preferable to minimizethe bwalkingdistance. bAnd do you holdthat: bIn ten and in fifteen, is referring to baskets? It is referring to jugs,and there is no dispute between the ibaraitot /i. bAndthis is bnot difficult: This ibaraita /i, which spoke of moving five, is referring to a case bin whichthe jugs bare taken one by one ineach bbasket. And that ibaraita /i, which speaks of moving ten, is referring to a case bin whichthe jugs bare taken two by two ineach basket. bAnd that ibaraita /i, which speaks of moving fifteen, is referring to a case bin whichthe jugs bare taken three by three,e.g., in the case of bthe small jugs of Harpanya. /b, bA dilemma was raised beforethe Sages: bThese four or five baskets, whichthe itanna bstatedin the mishna, is he saying that one may move only four or five baskets beven though he has many guests? Or perhaps, it is all according tothe number bof guests,and if there are more guests one may move more baskets. bAnd if you say it is all according to thenumber of bguests,does bone man movethe baskets to make room bfor all of them, or perhaps each and every man movesa basket to make room bfor himself? /b, bComeand bheara resolution to this dilemma from that which bRabba saidthat bRav Ḥiyya said: Once RabbiYehuda HaNasi bwent to a certain place and sawthat the bplace wastoo bcrowded for the students. And he went to the field and found a field full of bundlesof grain, band RabbiYehuda HaNasi bcleared the bundlesfrom bthe whole field in its entirety. Conclude from itthat the quantity that can be moved bis all according to thenumber of bguests. /b, bAnd Rav Yosef saidthat bRav Hoshaya said: Once Rabbi Ḥiyya went to a certain place and sawthat the bplace wastoo bcrowded for the students. And he went to the field and found a field full of bundlesof grain, band Rabbi Ḥiyya cleared the bundlesfrom bthe whole field in its entirety. Conclude from itthat the quantity that can be moved bis all according to thenumber of bguests. /b,The Gemara continues: bAnd still you have a dilemma.Does bone man movethe baskets to make room bfor all of them, or perhaps each and every man movesbaskets to make room bfor himself? /b, bComeand bheara resolution to this question. We learned: bAnd RabbiYehuda HaNasi bcleared the bundles.Apparently, one person moved the bundles to make room for the others. The Gemara rejects the proof: bAnd according to your reasoning,your opinion, do you think bRabbiYehuda HaNasi, the spiritual leader of his generation, bcleared the bundles himself? Rather, he orderedothers to do so, bandhe thereby bcleared the bundles. And actually, each and every one movesa bundle to make room bfor himself. /b,We learned in the mishna: One may move baskets of produce bdue to the guestsand in order to prevent the suspension of Torah study in the study hall. bRabbi Yoḥa said: Hospitalitytoward bguests is as great as rising earlyto go bto the study hall, asthe mishna equates them band teaches: Due to the guests and due to suspension ofTorah study in bthe study hall. And Rav Dimi from Neharde’a says:Hospitality toward guests is bgreater than rising early to the study hall, as it teaches: Due to the guests, andonly bafterward: And due to suspension ofTorah study in bthe study hall. Rav Yehuda saidthat bRav saidon a related note: bHospitalitytoward bguests is greater than receiving the Divine Presence, aswhen Abraham invited his guests bit is written: “And he said: Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please pass notfrom Your servant” (Genesis 18:3). Abraham requested that God, the Divine Presence, wait for him while he tended to his guests appropriately. bRabbi Elazar said: Come and see that the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, is not like that of flesh and blood. The attribute of flesh and bloodpeople is such that ba less significantperson bis unable to say to a more significantperson: bWait until I come to you, while with regard to the Holy One, Blessed be He, it is written: “And he said: Lord, if now I have found favorin Your sight, please pass not from Your servant.” Abraham requested that God wait for him due to his guests., bRav Yehuda bar Sheila saidthat bRabbi Asi saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa said:There are bsix matters a person enjoysthe bprofits of in this world, andnevertheless bthe principal exists for him for the World-to-Come, and they are: Hospitalitytoward bguests, and visitingthe bsick, and considerationduring bprayer,and brising early to the study hall, and one who raises his sons toengage bin Torah study, and one who judges another favorably,giving him the benefit of the doubt.,The Gemara asks: bIs that so? And did we not learnin a mishna: bTheseare the bmatters that a person does them and enjoys their profits in this world, andnevertheless bthe principal exists for him for the World-to-Come, and they are: Honoring one’s father and mother, and acts of loving kindness, and bringing peace between a person and another, and Torah study is equal to all of them.By inference: bThesematters, byes,one enjoys their profits in this world and the principal exists for him in the World-to-Come; bother matters, no. /b |
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28. Babylonian Talmud, Sotah, 48a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 48a. ואנן קא יהבינן לכהנים,ולודי אשאר מעשרות אמר ריש לקיש כל בית שאין מתודה על מעשר ראשון שוב אין מתודה על שאר מעשרות מאי טעמא אמר אביי הואיל ופתח בו הכתוב תחילה,מכלל דאפרושי הוו מפרשי והא תניא אף הוא ביטל את הוידוי וגזר על הדמאי לפי ששלח בכל גבול ישראל וראה שאין מפרישין אלא תרומה גדולה בלבד ומעשר ראשון ומעשר שני מקצתן מעשרין ומקצתן אין מעשרין,אמר להם בני בואו ואומר לכם כשם שתרומה גדולה יש בה עון מיתה כך תרומת מעשר וטבל יש בהן עון מיתה,עמד והתקין להם הלוקח פירות מע"ה מפריש מהן מעשר ראשון ומעשר שני מעשר ראשון מפריש ממנה תרומת מעשר ונותנה לכהן ומעשר שני עולה ואוכלו בירושלים מעשר ראשון ומעשר עני המוציא מחבירו עליו הראיה,תרתי תקן ביטל וידוי דחבירים וגזר על דמאי של עמי הארץ,ואף הוא ביטל את המעוררים מאי מעוררים אמר רחבה בכל יום ויום שהיו עומדים לוים על דוכן ואומרים (תהלים מד, כד) עורה למה תישן ה' אמר להן וכי יש שינה לפני המקום והלא כבר נאמר (תהלים קכא, ד) הנה לא ינום ולא יישן שומר ישראל אלא בזמן שישראל שרויין בצער ועובדי כוכבים בנחת ושלוה לכך נאמר עורה למה תישן ה',ואת הנוקפים מאי נוקפים אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל שהיו מסרטין לעגל בין קרניו כדי שיפול דם בעיניו אתא איהו בטיל משום דמיחזי כי מומא,במתניתא תנא שהיו חובטין אותו במקלות כדרך שעושין אותו לפני עבודת כוכבים אמר להם עד מתי אתם מאכילין נבילות למזבח נבילות הא שחיט להו אלא טריפות שמא ניקב קרום של מוח עמד והתקין להם טבעות בקרקע,עד ימיו היה פטיש מכה בירושלים בחולו של מועד,כל ימיו לא היה אדם צריך לשאול על הדמאי כדאמרן, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big משבטלה סנהדרין בטל השיר מבית המשתאות שנאמר (ישעיהו כד, ט) בשיר לא ישתו יין וגו',משמתו נביאים הראשונים בטלו אורים ותומים משחרב בהמ"ק בטל השמיר ונופת צופים ופסקו אנשי אמנה מישראל שנאמר (תהלים יב, ב) הושיעה ה' כי גמר חסיד וגו',רשב"ג אומר העיד ר' יהושע מיום שחרב בהימ"ק אין יום שאין בו קללה ולא ירד הטל לברכה וניטל טעם הפירות ר' יוסי אומר אף ניטל שומן הפירות ר' שמעון בן אלעזר אומר הטהרה נטלה את (הטעם ואת) הריח המעשרות נטלו את שומן הדגן וחכמים אומרים הזנות והכשפים כילו את הכל, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big וממאי דמשבטלה סנהדרי כתיב אמר רב הונא בריה דרב יהושע דאמר קרא (איכה ה, יד) זקנים משער שבתו בחורים מנגינתם,אמר רב אודנא דשמעא זמרא תעקר אמר רבא זמרא בביתא חורבא בסיפא שנאמר (צפניה ב, יד) קול ישורר בחלון חרב בסף כי ארזה ערה,מאי כי ארזה ערה אמר ר' יצחק בית המסובך בארזים עיר הוא אלא אפי' בית המסובך בארזים מתרועע אמר רב אשי שמע מינה כי מתחיל חורבא בסיפא מתחיל שנאמר חרב בסף ואיבעית אימא מהכא (ישעיהו כד, יב) ושאיה יוכת שער אמר מר בר רב אשי לדידי חזי ליה ומנגח כי תורא,אמר רב הונא זמרא דנגדי ודבקרי שרי דגרדאי אסיר רב הונא בטיל זמרא קם מאה אווזי בזוזא ומאה סאה חיטי בזוזא ולא איבעי אתא רב חסדא זלזיל ביה איבעאי אווזא בזוזא ולא משתכח,אמר רב יוסף זמרי גברי ועני נשי פריצותא זמרי נשי ועני גברי כאש בנעורת למאי נפקא מינה לבטולי הא מקמי הא,אמר ר' יוחנן כל השותה בארבעה מיני זמר מביא חמש פורעניות לעולם שנאמר (ישעיהו ה, יא) הוי משכימי בבקר שכר ירדפו מאחרי בנשף יין ידליקם והיה כנור ונבל תוף וחליל ויין משתיהם ואת פועל ה' לא יביטו,מה כתיב אחריו (ישעיהו ה, יג) לכן גלה עמי מבלי דעת שגורמין גלות לעולם וכבודו מתי רעב שמביאין רעב לעולם והמונו צחה צמא שגורמין לתורה שתשתכח מלומדיה (ישעיהו ה, טו) וישח אדם וישפל איש שגורמין שפלות לשונאו של הקב"ה ואין איש אלא הקדוש ב"ה שנאמר (שמות טו, ג) ה' איש מלחמה ועיני גבוהים תשפלנה שגורמין שפלות של ישראל,ומה כתיב אחריו לכן | 48a. band we giveit bto the priests.Ezra penalized the Levites for not ascending with him from Babylonia to Eretz Yisrael by taking away their right to the first tithe. Consequently, the owner of the produce can no longer recite the declaration of tithes, which includes the statement: “I have done according to all that You have commanded me” (Deuteronomy 26:14), as he did not give the tithe to the Levites.,The Gemara asks: bAnd let himat least bdeclarethat he donated bthe other tithesin the proper manner. bReish Lakish said: Any house that does not state the declaration aboutthe bfirst tithe can no longer state the declaration of the othertypes of btithes.The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasonfor this? bAbaye said: Because the writtenverse bbeganthe declaration bwiththe tithe given to the Levites: “And I also gave it to the Levite, and to the stranger, to the orphan, and to the widow, in accordance with all Your mitzvot that You commanded me” (Deuteronomy 26:13). If he cannot say the first part of the declaration, he cannot say the rest.,The Gemara poses a question: The fact that Rabbi Yoḥa canceled the declaration of tithes proves bby inference that they would separatetithes in his days. bBut isn’t it taught( iTosefta13:10): bHe,Yoḥa the High Priest, balso canceled the declarationof tithes band decreed with regard to doubtfully tithed produce [ idemai /i]?Why did he issue this decree? bBecause he sentmessengers bthroughoutthe land, to ball the borders ofEretz bYisraelto investigate, band saw that they would separate only iteruma gedola /i, andas for bfirst tithe and second tithe, somepeople bwould tithe and somepeople bwould not tithe. /b, bHe said to them: My sons, come and I will tell yousomething: bJust asthe ihalakhotof iteruma gedola /iinclude ba transgression punishable by deathat the hand of God, as one who ate produce from which iterumahas not been separated is punished with death from Heaven, bso too,the iterumaof the tithe,the portion the Levites must separate from their first tithe and give to priests, band untithed produce,these include ba transgression punishable by deathat the hand of God, if the produce is eaten without the tithes having been taken.,Realizing that it was uncertain with regard to whether or not people were separating tithes, bhe arose and instituted an ordice for themwith regard to doubtfully tithed produce: bOne who purchases produce from an iam ha’aretz /i,which may or may not have been tithed, bmust separate fromthe produce bfirst tithe and second tithedue to the uncertainty as to whether or not the iam ha’aretzseparated them. As for bfirst tithe, hethen bseparates iterumaof the tithe from it and gives it to a priest, andwith regard to bsecond tithe, he goes up and eats it in Jerusalem.However, with regard to the giving of bfirst titheto the Levite, band the poor man’s tithe,which can be eaten by anyone, as the Levites and the poor only have monetary rights to the produce, bthe burden of proof rests upon the claimant.Since the Levites and the poor cannot prove that these tithes had not already been set aside by the iam ha’aretz /i, they cannot force the buyer to give them those tithes.,In any case, the Gemara proves from the ibaraitathat not all people would separate tithes in the time of Yoḥa the High Priest. The Gemara answers: bHe instituted two ordices: He canceled the declaration of tithes of those devoted to the meticulous observance of mitzvot [ iḥaverim /i],especially ihalakhotof iterumaand tithes, band he decreed with regard to doubtfully tithed producepurchased bfrom iamei ha’aretz /i,because they may not have separated tithes at all.,§ The mishna further taught: bHe also nullifiedthe actions of bthe awakeners.The Gemara poses a question: bWhatare bawakeners? Raḥava says: On each and every day when the Levites stood on the platformin the Temple btheywould bsay: “Awake, why do you sleep, O Lord?”(Psalms 44:24). Therefore, they were called awakeners. Yoḥa the High Priest bsaid to them: Does the Omnipresent sleep,that you call upon Him to awaken? bBut isn’t it already stated: “Behold, He that keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps”(Psalms 121:4)? bRather, when the Jewish people are in a state of suffering, and the nations of the world are ina state of bcalm and serenity,it is bwith regard to thisthat bit is stated: “Awake, why do you sleep, O Lord?”If the verse were to be recited every morning it would be interpreted in the wrong way, so Yoḥa the High Priest therefore canceled the daily recitation of this verse.,The mishna also taught that Yoḥa the High Priest canceled bthe strikers.The Gemara asks: bWhatare bstrikers? Rav Yehuda saysthat bShmuel says:They are those bwho would scratch the calfbeing prepared for slaughter as an offering bbetween its horns, in order that blood should fall in its eyes,so that the animal would not see and resist being slaughtered. bHe cameand bnullifiedthis practice, bbecause it looked likethey are causing ba blemish. /b,A different explanation of strikers bwas taught in a ibaraita /i( iTosefta13:9): They are those bwho would beatthe calf bwith sticks,to stun it before it was slaughtered, bin the manner that they do it before idols.Yoḥa the High Priest bsaid to them: Until when will you feed unslaughtered animal carcasses to the altar?The Gemara asks: Are these animal carcasses actually bunslaughtered animal carcasses? They were slaughtered,i.e., they did not die of their own accord. bRather,he said that the beatings would cause them to become blike animals with a wound that will cause them to die within twelve months [ itereifot /i],as bperhapsthese beatings will bperforate the membrane surrounding the brain,which would make the calf a itereifa /i. bHetherefore barose and instituted an ordice for themto put brings in the groundwith which they could secure the animals, thereby making it easier to slaughter the animals without having to scratch them between the horns or hit them with sticks.,The mishna stated that buntil the daysof Yoḥa the High Priest bthe hammerof smiths bwould strike in Jerusalem.The Gemara explains: This is referring bto the intermediate days of a Festival.Though certain types of labor are permitted on those days, the banging of a hammer was outlawed, as the noise it made would detract from the feeling of sanctity of the day.,They further taught that in ballof bhis days a person did not need to inquire with regard to doubtfully tithed produce.The Gemara notes that this is blike thatwhich bwe statedabove, that he instituted an ordice with regard to the tithing of doubtfully tithed produce., strongMISHNA: /strong This mishna continues with the list of items that were nullified. bFromthe time bwhen the Sanhedrin ceased song wasalso bnullified from the places of feasts,i.e., it was no longer permitted to sing at a feast where wine was served, bas it is stated: “With song they shall not drink wine”(Isaiah 24:9)., bFromthe time bwhen the early prophets died the iUrim VeTummimwas nullified. Fromthe time bwhen theSecond bTemple was destroyed the ishamir /iworm bceasedto exist bandalso bthe sweetness of the honeycomb,as the verse says with regard to the laws of the Torah: “More to be desired are they than gold, indeed, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb” (Psalms 19:11). bAnd men of faith ceased frombeing among bthe Jewish people, as it is stated: “Help, Lord, for the pious man is finished;for the faithful fail from among the children of men” (Psalms 12:2)., bRabban Shimon ben Gamliel saysthat bRabbi Yehoshua testified: From the day the Temple was destroyed there is no day that does not includesome form of bcurse. Andsince then bthe dew has not descended for blessing, and the taste has been removed from fruit. Rabbi Yosei says:Since then, bthe fat of fruit has also been removed. Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar says:Since then, bthelost bpurity has removed the taste and the aromafrom fruit; bthe tithesthat were not separated bhave removed the fat of the grain. And the Sages say: Promiscuity and witchcrafthave bconsumed it all. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara poses a question with regard to the first clause of the mishna: bAnd from whereis it derived bthatthe verse: “With song they shall not drink wine” (Isaiah 24:9) bis writtenabout the period bfromthe time bwhen the Sanhedrin was nullified? Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua, said:From bthatwhich bthe verse states: “The Elders have ceased from the gate, the young men from their music”(Lamentations 5:14). This indicates that the dissolution of the Sanhedrin, who are the Elders from the gate, is linked to the end of the young men singing., bRav said:The bear that hears song should be uprooted,as it is prohibited to listen to music after the destruction of the Temple. bRava said:If there is bsong in a housethere will be bdestruction on the threshold, as it is stated: “Voices shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the doorposts; for its cedar work shall be uncovered”(Zephaniah 2:14).,The word “uncovered” [ iera /i] could be read to mean: Its city [ iira /i]. The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning of: bFor its cedar work shall be its city?Furthermore, bRabbi Yitzḥakwondered when he bsaid: Is a house interlaced with cedarsnot as strong as ba city,and therefore not threatened by desolation? bRather,it means that beven a house interlaced with cedars will become unstable [ imitroe’a /i]if song is heard there. bRav Ashi said: Learn from it that when the destruction startsit bstarts with the threshold, as it is stated: “Desolation shall be in the posts.” And if you wish, sayinstead that they derive this idea bfrom here:“In the city is left desolation, band the gate is smitten unto ruin [ ishe’iyya /i]”(Isaiah 24:12). The term “ruin” here is referring to the destructive demon known as iShe’iyya /i, who strikes the gate first. bMar bar Rav Ashi said: I saw it,this iShe’iyya /i, band it was goringand wreaking havoc blike an ox. /b, bRav Huna said:The bsong of those who pull ships and lead the herd is permitted,for their singing assists them to establish a rhythm in their work. However, that bof weavers is forbidden,as they sing only for their own enjoyment. The Gemara relates that subsequently, bRav Huna nullifiedall types of bsong,and this led to a general blessing: The price of bone hundred ducks stood at a dinar, and one hundred ise’aof wheat at a dinar, and there was no desirefor them even at such a cheap price, due to their great abundance. Later, when bRav Ḥisda came and belittledthis prohibition, people began to sing again. As a result, prices increased greatly, and this led to a situation whereby one bwanteda single bduck forone bdinar and it could not be found. /b, bRav Yosef said:If bmen sing and women respond,this is blicentiousness.If bwomen sing and men respond,it causes the evil inclination to burn bas ifone were setting bfire to chipsof kindling. The Gemara poses a question: bWhat difference is there?Rav Yosef indicates that in any case both are prohibited. The Gemara answers: bTo nullify one before the other,i.e., if it is impossible to ban singing entirely, they should at least stop the most problematic form., bRabbi Yoḥa says: Anyone who drinkswine bwiththe accompaniment of bfour types of instruments brings fivetypes of bretribution to the world, as it is stated: “Woe to them who rise early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; who tarry late into the night, until wine inflames them. And the harp and the psaltery, the drum and the pipe and wine, are at their feasts, but they do not regard the work of the Lord”(Isaiah 5:11–12).,After listing the sin of those who drink wine with musical accompaniment, the verse states their punishment: bWhat is written afterward? “Therefore, My people have gone into captivity, for want of knowledge”(Isaiah 5:13), meaning bthat they cause exile to the world; “and their honorable men are famished”(Isaiah 5:13), bas they bring famine to the world; “and their multitude are parched with thirst”(Isaiah 5:13), bthat they cause the Torah,which is compared to water, bto be forgotten by those who learn it. “And mankind is bowed down, and man is humbled”(Isaiah 5:15), bthat they cause the enemy of the Holy One, Blessed be He,i.e., God Himself, bto be brought down, as “man”in the phrase “and man is humbled” means bnothing otherthan bthe Holy One, Blessed be He, asit bis stated: “The Lord is a man of war”(Exodus 15:3). The verse continues: b“And the eyes of the lofty are humbled”(Isaiah 5:15), bthat they cause the Jewish people to be brought down.These are the five retributions., bAnd whatpunishment bis written afterwardfor the people who drank wine with musical accompaniment? b“Therefore, /b |
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29. Babylonian Talmud, Taanit, 28b, 26a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 26a. אלא על נפש שבעה וכרס מלאה איני והא רב פפא איקלע לבי כנישתא דאבי גובר וגזר תענית וירדו להם גשמים עד חצות ואמר הלל ואחר כך אכלו ושתו שאני בני מחוזא דשכיחי בהו שכרות:, br br big strongהדרן עלך סדר תעניות אלו /strong /big br br,מתני׳ big strongבשלשה /strong /big פרקים בשנה כהנים נושאין את כפיהן ארבע פעמים ביום בשחרית במוסף במנחה ובנעילת שערים בתעניות ובמעמדות וביום הכפורים,אלו הן מעמדות לפי שנאמר (במדבר כח, ב) צו את בני ישראל את קרבני לחמי וכי היאך קרבנו של אדם קרב והוא אינו עומד על גביו,התקינו נביאים הראשונים עשרים וארבעה משמרות על כל משמר ומשמר היה מעמד בירושלים של כהנים של לוים ושל ישראלים,הגיע זמן המשמר לעלות כהנים ולוים עולים לירושלים וישראל שבאותו משמר מתכנסין לעריהן וקוראין במעשה בראשית (ואנשי המעמד היו מתענין ארבעה ימים בשבוע מיום ב' ועד יום חמישי ולא היו מתענין ערב שבת מפני כבוד השבת ולא באחד בשבת כדי שלא יצאו ממנוחה ועונג ליגיעה ותענית וימותו),ביום הראשון בראשית ויהי רקיע בשני יהי רקיע ויקוו המים בשלישי יקוו המים ויהי מאורות ברביעי יהי מאורות וישרצו המים בחמישי ישרצו המים ותוצא הארץ בששי ותוצא הארץ ויכלו השמים,פרשה גדולה קורין אותה בשנים והקטנה ביחיד בשחרית במוסף ובמנחה נכנסין וקורין על פיהן כקורין את שמע ערב שבת במנחה לא היו נכנסין מפני כבוד השבת,כל יום שיש בו הלל אין מעמד בשחרית קרבן מוסף אין בנעילה קרבן עצים אין במנחה דברי ר' עקיבא,אמר לו בן עזאי כך היה רבי יהושע שונה קרבן מוסף אין במנחה קרבן עצים אין בנעילה חזר רבי עקיבא להיות שונה כבן עזאי,זמן עצי כהנים והעם תשעה באחד בניסן בני ארח בן יהודה בעשרים בתמוז בני דוד בן יהודה בחמשה באב בני פרעוש בן יהודה בשבעה בו בני יונדב בן רכב בעשרה בו בני סנאה בן בנימן בחמשה עשר בו בני זתוא בן יהודה,ועמהם כהנים ולוים וכל מי שטעה בשבטו ובני גונבי עלי ובני קוצעי קציעות,בעשרים בו בני פחת מואב בן יהודה בעשרים באלול בני עדין בן יהודה באחד בטבת שבו בני פרעוש שניה באחד בטבת לא היה בו מעמד שהיה בו הלל וקרבן מוסף וקרבן עצים,חמשה דברים אירעו את אבותינו בשבעה עשר בתמוז וחמשה בתשעה באב בשבעה עשר בתמוז | 26a. bonly on a satisfied soul and a full stomach.Consequently, it is preferable to return home to eat and drink so as to recite ihallelin the proper frame of mind. The Gemara asks: bIs that so? But Rav Pappa happenedto come to bthe synagogue of Avi Govarin Meḥoza, band he decreed a fast, and rain fell for them before midday, andyet bhe recited ihallel /iimmediately, bandonly afterward bthey ate and drank.The Gemara explains: bThe inhabitants ofthe city of bMeḥoza are different, as drunkenness is common among them.Had Rav Pappa told them to go home to eat and drink, they would have become drunk and been unable to pray.,, strongMISHNA: /strong bAt three times in the year priests raise their handsto recite the Priestly Benediction bfour times ina single bday, in the morning prayer, in the additional prayer, in the afternoon prayer, andin the evening bin the closing of the gates,i.e., the ine’ilaprayer. And these are the three times: bDuringcommunal bfastsheld due to lack of rain, on which the closing prayer is recited; band during non-priestly watches [ ima’amadot /i],when the Israelite members of the guard parallel to the priestly watch come and read the act of Creation from the Torah, as explained below; band on Yom Kippur. /b, bThese arethe bnon-priestly watches: Since it is stated: “Command the children of Israeland say to them: bMy offering of food,which is presented to Me made by a fire, of a sweet savor to Me, you shall guard the sacrifice to Me in its due season” (Numbers 28:2), this verse teaches that the daily offering was a communal obligation that applied to every member of the Jewish people. The mishna asks: bBut how can a person’s offering be sacrificed when he is not standing next to it? /b,The mishna explains: Since it is impossible for the entire nation to be present in Jerusalem when the daily offering is brought, bthe early prophets,Samuel and David, binstitutedthe division of the priests into btwenty-four priestly watches,each of which served for approximately one week, twice per year. bFor each and every priestly watch there wasa corresponding bnon-priestly watch in Jerusalem of priests, Levites, and Israeliteswho would stand by the communal offerings for that day to represent the community., bWhenthe btime arrivedfor the members of a certain bpriestly watch to ascend,the bpriests and Levitesof that watch would bascend to Jerusalemto perform the Temple service. bAndas for bthe Israelitesassigned bto that priestly watch,some of them went up to Jerusalem, while the rest of them bassembled in their towns and read the act of Creation. And the members of the non-priestly watch,who represented the entire community that week, bwould fast four days a week, from Monday until Thursday. And they would not fast on Shabbat eve, in deference to Shabbat,as they did not wish to start Shabbat while fasting. bAndthey did bnotfast on Sunday, bso as not to go from rest and delightimmediately bto exertion and fasting, andrun the risk that they might bdieas a result of the abrupt change.,Which portions of the Torah would the members of the non-priestly watch read on each day? bOn Sundaythey would read the portions starting with: b“In the beginning” and “Let there be a firmament”(Genesis 1:1–8). bOn Mondaythey would read: b“Let there be a firmament” and “Let the waters be gathered”(Genesis 1:9–13). bOn Tuesdaythey would read: b“Let the waters be gathered” and “Let there be lights”(Genesis 1:14–19). bOn Wednesday: “Let there be lights” and “Let the waters swarm”(Genesis 1:20–23). bOn Thursday: “Let the waters swarm” and “Let the earth bring forth”(Genesis 1:24–31). bOn Friday: “Let the earth bring forth”and b“And the heavenand the earth bwere finished”(Genesis 2:1–3)., bA long passage,consisting of six verses or more, bis read by twopeople, band a shortpassage is read bby one,as one cannot read fewer than three verses from the Torah together. They read from the Torah bin the morning prayer and in the additional prayer. In the afternoon prayerthe members of the non-priestly watch benterthe synagogue band readthe daily portion bby heart, just as one recites iShema /ievery day. On bShabbat eve at the afternoon prayer, they would not enterthe synagogue for the communal Torah readings, bin deference to Shabbat. /b,The mishna states a principle: On bany day that hasthe recitation of ihallel /i,but on which the additional offering was not sacrificed, e.g., Hanukkah, bthere is noreading of the Torah by the bnon-priestly watch in the morning prayer.On days that have both ihalleland ban additional offering,such as Festivals, the non-priestly watch would also bnotread from the Torah bat the closing prayer.When ba wood offeringwas brought, as explained below, there was bnonon-priestly watch bin the afternoon prayer.This is bthe statement of Rabbi Akiva. /b, bBen Azzai said toRabbi Akiva that bthis is how Rabbi Yehoshua would teachthis ihalakha /i: On days when ban additional offeringwas sacrificed, there was bnonon-priestly watch bin the afternoon prayer.When ba wood offeringwas brought, there was bnonon-priestly watch bin the closing prayer.Upon hearing this, bRabbi Akiva retractedhis ruling and began bto teach in accordance withthe opinion of bben Azzai. /b,The mishna details the btimesfor bthe woodoffering bof priests and the people.These were private holidays specific to certain families, on which their members would volunteer a wood offering for the altar. There were bninesuch days and families: bOn the first of Nisan, the descendants of Araḥ ben Yehuda; on the twentieth of Tammuz, the descendants of David ben Yehuda; on the fifth of Av, the descendants of Parosh ben Yehuda; on the seventh ofAv, bthe descendants of Jonadab ben Rechab; on the tenth ofAv, bthe descendants of Sena’a ben Binyamin; on the fifteenth ofAv, bthe descendants of Zattu ben Yehuda. /b, bAndincluded bwiththis group of Zattu ben Yehuda’s descendants bwereother bpriests; and Levites; and anyone who erred with regard to his tribe,i.e., Israelites who did not know which tribe they were from, band the descendants of those who deceivedthe authorities bwith a pestle; and the descendants of those who packed dried figs.These last groups and their descriptions are explained in the Gemara.,The mishna resumes its list. bOn the twentieth ofAv, bthe descendants of Paḥat Moav ben Yehuda; on the twentieth of Elul, the descendants of Adin ben Yehuda; on the first of Tevet, the descendants of Parosh returnedto bring wood for ba secondtime; likewise bon the first of Tevet, there was no non-priestly watch, asit is Hanukkah, bon which ihallelisrecited, bandit is the New Moon, on which ban additional offeringis sacrificed, bandthere was also ba wood offering. /b,The mishna discusses the five major communal fast days. bFivecalamitous bmatters occurred to our forefathers on the seventeenth of Tammuz, and fiveother disasters happened bon the Ninth of Av. On the seventeenth of Tammuz /b |
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30. Babylonian Talmud, Tamid, 31b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 31b. הראשון בראש וברגל הראש בימינו וחוטמו כלפי זרועו קרניו בין אצבעותיו בית שחיטתו מלמעלן והפדר נתון עליה הרגל של ימין בשמאלו ובית עורן לחוץ השני בשתי ידים של ימין בימינו ושל שמאל בשמאלו ובית עורן לחוץ,השלישי בעוקץ וברגל העוקץ בימינו והאליה מדולדלת בין אצבעותיו ואצבע הכבד ושתי כליות עמו הרגל של שמאל בשמאלו ובית עורן לחוץ הרביעי בחזה ובגרה החזה בימינו והגרה בשמאלו וצלעותיו בין שני אצבעותיו החמישי בשתי דפנות של ימין בימינו ושל שמאל בשמאלו ובית עורן לחוץ הששי קרבים הנתונים בבזך וכרעים על גביהן מלמעלה,הז' בסולת השמיני בחביתים התשיעי ביין הלכו ונתנום מחצי כבש ולמטה במערבו ומלחום וירדו ובאו להן ללשכת הגזית לקרות את שמע:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big תנא יד ורגל כעקידת יצחק בן אברהם:,לא היו כופתין את הטלה מאי טעמא רב הונא ורב חסדא חד אמר משום בזיון קדשים וחד אמר משום דמהלך בחוקי העמים,מאי בינייהו איכא בינייהו דכפתיה בשיראי אי נמי בהוצא דדהבא,תנן התם שלש עשרה שולחנות היו במקדש שמונה של שיש בבית המטבחיים שעליהם מדיחין את הקרבים,ב' במערבה של כבש אחד של שיש ואחד של כסף על של שיש נותנין את האברים ועל של כסף כלי שרת,ובאולם שנים מבפנים על פתח הבית אחד של כסף ואחד של זהב על של כסף נותנין לחם הפנים בכניסתו ועל של זהב ביציאתו,שמעלין בקודש ולא מורידין ואחד של זהב בפנים שעליו לחם הפנים תמיד,מכדי אין עניות במקום עשירות אמאי עבדי דשיש ניעבדו דכסף ניעבדו דזהב אמר רב חיננא בשם רבי אסי ורבי אסי בשם רבי שמואל בר רב יצחק מפני שהוא מרתיח:,של שחר היה נשחט על קרן מזרחית צפונית: מנא הני מילי אמר רב חסדא דאמר קרא (במדבר כח, ג) שנים ליום כנגד היום,תניא נמי הכי שנים ליום כנגד היום אתה אומר נגד היום או אינו אלא חובת היום כשהוא אומר (במדבר כח, ד) את הכבש אחד תעשה בבקר ואת הכבש השני תעשה בין הערבים הרי חובת היום אמור הא מה אני מקיים שנים ליום נגד היום,הא כיצד תמיד של שחר היה נשחט על קרן צפונית מערבית על טבעת שניה ושל בין הערבים היה נשחט על קרן צפונית מזרחית על טבעת שניה:,עשרה דברים שאל אלכסנדרוס מוקדון את זקני הנגב אמר להן | 31b. bThe firstpriest stood bwith the head and with theright hind blegof the animal. Since it was more significant, bthe headwas bin his righthand, band its nosewas turned btoward thepriest’s barm. Its hornswere bbetween his fingers,and bthe place of its slaughterwas babove, and the fats were placed upon it,to conceal the bloody place of slaughter. bThe righthind blegwas bin his lefthand, bandthe outer bsideof the leg, from which bits hidewas flayed, rather than the side on which the incision was made, was facing bout. The secondpriest stood bwiththe btwo forelegs.He held the brightforeleg bin his righthand bandthe bleftforeleg bin his lefthand, bandthe outer bsideof the leg, from which bits hidewas flayed, was facing bout. /b, bThe thirdpriest stood bwith the haunch and theleft hind bleg.He held bthe haunch in his righthand, band the tailwas bhanging between his fingers, and the finger- /blike protrusion bof the liver and the two kidneyswere bwith it.He held bthe lefthind bleg in his lefthand, bandthe outer bsideof the leg, from which bits hidewas flayed, was facing bout. The fourthpriest stood bwith the breast and with the cud,with bthe breast in his righthand band the cud in his lefthand, band itstwo bribswere attached to the cud bbetween his two fingers. The fifthpriest stood bwiththe btwo flanks;the brightflank was bin his righthand bandthe bleftflank bin his lefthand, bandthe outer bsidewas facing bout. The sixthpriest stood bwith the innards, whichwere bplaced in a vessel, andthe blower legswere placed batop them from above. /b, bThe seventhpriest stood bwith the fine flourof the meal offering that accompanies the daily offering. bThe eighthpriest stood bwith the griddle-cakeoffering sacrificed daily by the High Priest, half in the morning and half in the evening. bThe ninthpriest stood bwith the winefor the libations that accompany the daily offering. The nine priests bwent and placedthe items they were carrying on the area bfrom halfwayup bthe ramp and below,in the lower portion of the ramp, bon the westside of the ramp, band they saltedthe limbs and the meal offering. bAnd they descended and came to the Chamber of Hewn Stone to recitethe morning iShema /iand the other texts that they would recite, as explained at the beginning of the next chapter., strongGEMARA: /strong The mishna teaches that the priests would bind the lamb for the daily offering. With regard to this procedure, the Sages btaughtin a ibaraita /i: The animal’s bforeleg andhind blegare bound together, basin the bbinding of Isaac, son of Abraham. /b,The mishna teaches that the priests bwould not tie the lambby fastening all four of its legs together. The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasonfor this? The Gemara answers: This is a matter of dispute between bRav Huna and Rav Ḥisda. Oneof these Sages bsaid:The animal is not tied bbecausethis would constitute bdegradation of sacred items; andthe other bone saidthat the animal is not tied bbecause thatmethod is the one adopted in pagan worship, and is therefore considered to be bwalking in the statutes of the nations,and the verse states: “You shall not walk in their statutes” (Leviticus 18:3).,The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe practical difference bbetweenthese opinions? The Gemara answers: There is a difference bbetweenthem in a case bwhereone btiesthe animal bwith silk [ ibeshira’ei /i],which would be considered to be treating the offering in the manner of the nations, but it is not degrading. bAlternatively,these opinions differ with regard to a case where the animal is tied bwith a thread of gold.As in the case of the silk, tying the animal with gold would be considered to be treating the offering in the manner of the nations, but it is not a degradation.,§ The mishna teaches that the innards were rinsed on marble tables in the slaughterhouse in the Temple. With regard to these tables, bwe learnedin a mishna belsewhere( iShekalim17b) that there bwere thirteen tables in the Temple. Eightof them were fashioned bfrom marbleand were located bin the slaughterhouse,north of the altar, bwherethe priests would slaughter the offerings of the most sacred order. bUpon thesetables bthey would wash the innardsof the offerings, as the cool marble preserved the freshness of the meat.,There were btwomore tables bon the westernside bof the ramp,south of the altar, bone of marble and one of silver. Onthe table bof marblethe priests would bplace the limbsbefore they would bring them up to the altar. bAnd onthe table bof silverthey would place the ninety-three bservice vesselsbrought out from the Chamber of Vessels each morning for the services of that day.,The mishna continues: bAnd in the Entrance Hallthere were btwotables bonits binside, near the opening to the Temple, one of silver and one of gold. Onthe table bof silverthe priests would bplace the shewbread before its entranceto the Sanctuary, after it was baked on Shabbat eve. bAnd onthe table bof goldthey would place the old shewbread bupon its exitfrom the Sanctuary, to be divided among the priests.,The shewbread was not placed on a silver table upon its exit from the Sanctuary, basone bpromotes inmatters of bsanctity andone bdoes not demote.Since in the interim the shewbread had been placed on the golden Table for the shewbread inside the Sanctuary, upon its removal it was not placed on anything other than a golden table. bAndlastly, there was bonetable bof gold insidethe Sanctuary. This was the Table for the shewbread, bupon which the shewbread alwaysrested (see Exodus 25:23–30).,The Gemara asks: bSincethere is a principle that btheremay be bno poverty in a place of wealth,i.e., the Temple must always be run in a lavish manner, why did they bfashionany tables bof marble? Let them fashionall the tables bof silver,due to the grandeur of the Temple, or blet them fashionthem all bof gold. Rav Ḥina says in the name of Rabbi Asi, and Rabbi Asisays bin the name of Rabbi Shmuel bar Rav Yitzḥak:Gold and silver tables are unfit for the sacrificial limbs bbecausemetal bscalds.Unlike marble, metal can become very hot in the sun, and this might cause the sacrificial limbs to deteriorate.,§ The mishna teaches that the daily offering bof the morning was slaughtered at the northwest cornerof the altar, in the first ring of the second row from the south, which is called the second ring, whereas the daily offering of the afternoon was slaughtered at the northeast corner of the altar, at the second ring. The Gemara asks: bFrom where are these mattersderived? bRav Ḥisda said: As the verse states,with regard to the daily offering: “This is the offering made by fire that you shall bring to the Lord: Lambs of the first year without blemish, btwo by day,for a continual burnt offering” (Numbers 28:3). The phrase “two by day” indicates that the lamb must be slaughtered boppositethe light of bthe day.Since Eretz Yisrael is north of the equator, the sun is always in the southern part of the sky. The first ring, then, is always in the long shadow of the altar, and only the second ring falls under direct sunlight., bThis is also taughtin a ibaraita /i, that the phrase b“two by day”teaches that the lamb must be slaughtered boppositethe light of bthe day.The ibaraitaasks: bDo you saythat this means boppositethe light of bthe day, ordoes it bonlymean that two lambs must be sacrificed for the bobligation ofeach bday?The ibaraitaanswers that bwhenthe verse bstates: “One lamb you shall sacrifice in the morning, and the other lamb you shall sacrifice in the afternoon”(Numbers 28:4), bthe obligation ofeach bday isthereby bstatedexplicitly. bHow,then, bdo I realizethe meaning of b“two by day”?This teaches that the lamb must be slaughtered boppositethe light of bthe day. /b,The ibaraitaconcludes: bHow so,i.e., how can this principle be applied to both the morning and the afternoon offerings? The bdaily offering of the morning was slaughtered oppositethe bnorthwest cornerof the altar, bonthe bsecond ring,across from the sun, which rises in the east. bAndthe daily offering bof the afternoon was slaughtered oppositethe bnortheast cornerof the altar, bonthe fourth ring of the second row, also called the bsecond ring,again across from the sun, which is located in the west in the afternoon.,§ With regard to the position of the sun, the Gemara relates that bAlexander of Macedon asked the Elders of the Negevabout bten matters. He said to them: /b |
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31. Babylonian Talmud, Yoma, 21b, 18a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 18a. ומאי ארבע או חמש לרבנן דאמרי נכנס נוטל שש ויוצא נוטל שש ושכר הגפת דלתות לא משתים עשרה בעי מיפלג בציר חדא מפלגא חמש שקיל,לר' יהודה דאמר נכנס נוטל שבע שתים בשכר הגפת דלתות ויוצא נוטל חמש מעשר בעי מיפלג בציר חדא מפלגא ושקיל ארבע,רבא אמר כולה רבי היא וסבר לה כר' יהודה ואלא מאי ארבע הא חמש בעי למשקל,לא קשיא הא דאיכא משמר המתעכב הא דליכא משמר המתעכב,אי איכא משמר המתעכב משמנה בעי למפלג ושקיל ארבע אי ליכא משמר המתעכב מעשר בעי למפלג ושקיל חמש,אי הכי מאי רבי אומר לעולם חמש קשיא, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big מסרו לו זקנים מזקני בית דין וקורין לפניו בסדר היום ואומרים לו אישי כהן גדול קרא אתה בפיך שמא שכחת או שמא לא למדת ערב יום כפורים שחרית מעמידין אותו בשער מזרח ומעבירין לפניו פרים ואילים וכבשים כדי שיהא מכיר ורגיל בעבודה כל שבעת הימים לא היו מונעין ממנו מאכל ומשתה ערב יוה"כ עם חשיכה לא היו מניחין אותו לאכול הרבה מפני שהמאכל מביא את השינה, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big בשלמא שמא שכח לחיי אלא שמא לא למד מי מוקמינן כי האי גוונא,והתניא (ויקרא כא, י) והכהן הגדול מאחיו שיהא גדול מאחיו בכח בנוי בחכמה ובעושר אחרים אומרים מנין שאם אין לו שאחיו הכהנים מגדלין אותו ת"ל והכהן הגדול מאחיו גדלהו משל אחיו,אמר רב יוסף לא קשיא כאן במקדש ראשון כאן במקדש שני דאמר ר' אסי תרקבא דדינרי עיילא ליה מרתא בת בייתוס לינאי מלכא על דאוקמיה ליהושע בן גמלא בכהני רברבי,ערב יום הכפורים שחרית וכו' תנא אף השעירים ותנא דידן מאי טעמא לא תנא שעירים כיון דעל חטא קא אתו חלשא דעתיה,אי הכי פר נמי על חטא הוא דאתי פר כיון דעליו ועל אחיו הכהנים הוא דאתי באחיו הכהנים אי איכא איניש דאית ביה מילתא מידע ידע ליה ומהדר ליה בתשובה בכולהו ישראל לא ידע,אמר רבינא היינו דאמרי אינשי אי בר אחתיך דיילא הוי חזי בשוקא קמיה לא תחליף,כל שבעת הימים לא היו מונעין וכו' תניא רבי יהודה בן נקוסא אומר מאכילין אותו סלתות וביצים כדי למסמסו אמרו לו כל שכן שאתה מביאו לידי חימום,תניא סומכוס אמר משום ר' מאיר אין מאכילין אותו לא אב"י ואמרי לה לא אבב"י ויש אומרים אף לא יין לבן לא אב"י לא אתרוג ולא ביצים ולא יין ישן ואמרי לה לא אבב"י לא אתרוג ולא ביצים ולא בשר שמן ולא יין ישן ויש אומרים אף לא יין לבן מפני שהיין לבן מביא את האדם לידי טומאה,תנו רבנן זב תולין לו במאכל וכל מיני מאכל אלעזר בן פנחס אומר משום רבי יהודה בן בתירא אין מאכילין אותו לא חגב"י ולא גב"ם ולא כל דברים המביאין לידי טומאה לא חגב"י לא חלב ולא גבינה ולא ביצה ולא יין ולא גב"ם מי גריסין של פול ובשר שמן ומרייס,ולא כל דברים המביאין לידי טומאה לאתויי מאי לאתויי הא דת"ר חמשה דברים מביאים את האדם לידי טומאה ואלו הן השום | 18a. bAnd whatis the meaning of bfour or five;i.e., when does the High Priest take four loaves and when does he take five? According bto the Rabbis, who say:The priestly watch that is bincomingon Shabbat btakes sixof the loaves, bandthe boutgoingwatch btakes six, andthe incoming watch receives bnogreater portion as bpayment for closing the doors,it is bfrom twelveloaves that the High Priest bmust divideand take his share, but he receives bhalfof the loaves bless one,meaning that bhe takes five.According to the Rabbis, the High Priest receives less than half; however, since it is inappropriate to give him a piece of a loaf, less than half is five whole loaves.,According bto Rabbi Yehuda, who said:The priestly watch that is bincomingon Shabbat btakes sevenof the loaves, btwoof which bare payment for closing the doors;and the boutgoingwatch btakes fiveloaves, it is bfrom tenthat bhe must dividethe loaves. Those two of the twelve loaves are a separate payment and are not factored into the tally of those designated for distribution. bSubtract one from halfof that total, as subtracting less than one loaf would lead to a situation where the High Priest receives a piece of a loaf, which is inappropriate. bAndtherefore, the High Priest btakes four. /b, bRava saidthat the ibaraitashould be explained differently. The bentire ibaraita bisin accordance with the opinion of bRabbiYehuda HaNasi, band he holdsin accordance with the opinion of bRabbi Yehudathat only ten loaves are divided. bRather, whatthen is the meaning of the statement that the High Priest takes bfourloaves? According to Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, bdoesn’t he need to take five? /b,The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficult. This ihalakhathat the High Priest takes four loaves is in a case bwhere there is a watch that is detained.When the start of a Festival occurs on a Sunday night and one of the priestly watches was forced to arrive before Shabbat to ensure that they would arrive in time for the Festival; or, alternatively, if the Festival ended on a Thursday and one of the priestly watches was detained until the conclusion of Shabbat and only then departed, that priestly watch takes two loaves. bThat ihalakhathat the High Priest takes five loaves is in a case bwhere there is not a watch that is detained,and the shewbread in divided only between the watch that concludes its service that Shabbat and the watch that begins its service that Shabbat., bIf there is a watch that is detained,that detained watch takes two loaves, and the outgoing watch takes two loaves as payment for closing the doors. Therefore, it is bfrom eightthat the High Priest bmust dividethe loaves, and he btakes four. If there is not a watch that is detained,it is bfrom tenthat bhe must dividethe loaves and the High Priest btakes five. /b,The Gemara asks: bIf so,that even the middle statement of the ibaraitais attributed to Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi and it is referring to a watch that is detained, bwhatis the meaning of the last clause in the ibaraita /i: bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bsays:The High Priest balwaystakes bfiveloaves? That statement indicates that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi disagrees with the middle clause, while according to Rava’s interpretation Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi concedes that in certain circumstances the High Priest takes only four loaves. The Gemara concludes: Indeed, it is bdifficultto reconcile Rava’s interpretation with the language of the ibaraita /i., strongMISHNA: /strong The Sages bprovidedthe High Priest bwith Eldersselected bfrom the Elders of the court, and theywould bread before him the orderof the service bof the dayof Yom Kippur. bAnd theywould bsay to him: My Master, High Priest. Readthe order of the service bwith your own mouth,as bperhaps you forgotthis reading bor perhaps you did not learnto read. bOn Yom Kippur evein the bmorning,the Elders bstand him atthe beastern gateof the courtyard band pass before him bulls and rams and sheep so that he will be familiarwith the animals bandgrow baccustomed to the service,as these were the animals sacrificed on Yom Kippur. Throughout ball the seven daysthat the High Priest was in the iParhedrinchamber, bthey would not withhold from himany bfood or drinkthat he desired. However, bon Yom Kippur eve at nightfall, they would not allow him to eat a great deal because food induces sleepand they did not allow him to sleep, as will be explained., strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara wonders about the depiction in the mishna of the Elders questioning the High Priest as to whether he forgot this reading or perhaps did not learn to read. bGranted, perhaps he forgot,that is bfine,as it is conceivable that he is not accustomed to reading the Torah and might have forgotten this portion. bHowever,is it conceivable that bperhapsthe High Priest bdid not learnto read? bDo we appointa High Priest bof that sortwho never learned the Bible?, bBut wasn’t it taughtin a ibaraitathat it is stated: b“And the priest who is greater than his brethren”(Leviticus 21:10); this teaches bthat hemust bbe greater than hispriestly bbrethren in strength, in beauty, in wisdom, and in wealth. iAḥerimsay:Wealth is not a prerequisite for selecting a High Priest, but bfrom whereis it derived bthat if he does not haveproperty of his own bthat his brethren the priests elevate himand render him wealthy from their own property? bThe verse states: “And the priest who is greater [ ihaggadol /i] than his brethren”; elevate him [ igaddelehu /i] fromthe property bof his brethren.In any event, there is a consensus that wisdom is a prerequisite for his selection., bRav Yosef said:This is bnot difficult. There,the ibaraitathat lists wisdom among the attributes of the High Priest is referring to bthe First Temple,where this ihalakhawas observed and the High Priests possessed those attributes listed. bHere,the mishna is referring to bthe Second Temple,where this ihalakhawas not observed, so a situation where the High Priest was not well-versed in the Bible was conceivable. bAs Rav Asi said:The wealthy bMarta, daughter of Baitos, brought a half- ise’aof dinars in to King Yannai forthe fact bthat he appointed Yehoshua ben Gamla as High Priest.This is an example of the appointment of High Priests by means of bribery and gifts. Since that was the practice, a totally ignorant High Priest could have been appointed.,§ It was taught in the mishna: bOn Yom Kippur evein the bmorning,the elders pass different animals before the High Priest. A itanna btaughtin the iTosefta /i: bEven goatswere brought before him. The Gemara asks: bAnd the itanna /iof bourmishna, bwhat is the reasonthat bhe did not teachthat bgoatswere among the animals that passed before the High Priest? The Gemara answers: bSincegoats bcomeas atonement bfor sins,passing them before the High Priest will evoke transgressions and he will bbecome distraught. /b,The Gemara asks: bIf so, a bullshould not be passed before him, bas it too comesto atone bfor sin.The Gemara answers that there is a difference in the case of ba bull, sinceit is to atone bfor hissins band forthe sins of bhis brethren the priests that it comes; among his brethren the priests, if there is a person who has asinful bmatter,the High Priest bwould knowabout it bandlead bhim back tothe path of righteousness bthrough repentance.Therefore, passing a bull before the High Priest will not render him distraught, as it will merely remind him of his responsibility toward his priestly brethren. On the other hand, bwith regard to the entire Jewish people, he does not knowof their sinful matters and is unable to facilitate their repentance. Passing goats before the High Priest will evoke their sins as well as his inability to correct the situation, leaving him distraught.,Apropos the High Priest being privy to the sinful behavior of his fellow priests, bRavina saidthat bthisexplains the folk saying bthat people say: Ifthe beloved bson of yourbeloved bsister becomes a policeman [ idayyala /i], seeto it that bin the marketplace you do not pass before him.Be wary of him because he knows your sins.,§ We learned in the mishna: Throughout ball the seven daysthat the High Priest was in the iParhedrinchamber, bthey would not withholdfrom him any food or drink that he desired. bIt was taughtin a ibaraita /i: bRabbi Yehuda ben Nekosa says:On Yom Kippur eve bthey feed him fine flour and eggs in order to loosen hisbowels, so that he will not need to relieve himself on Yom Kippur. bThey said toRabbi Yehuda ben Nekosa: In feeding him those foods, ball the more so that you bring him to a state of arousal.Feeding him those foods is antithetical to the efforts to prevent the High Priest from becoming impure, as they are liable to cause him to experience a seminal emission., bIt was taughtin a ibaraitathat bSumakhos said in the name of Rabbi Meir: One does not feed himfoods represented by the acrostic: iAlef /i, ibeit /i, iyod /i; and some saythat one does bnotfeed him foods represented by the acrostic: iAlef /i, ibeit /i, ibeit /i, iyod /i; and some say neitherdoes one feed him bwhite wine.The Gemara elaborates: bNot ialef /i, ibeit /i, iyod /imeans bneither ietrog /i, nor eggs [ ibeitzim /i], nor old wine [ iyayin /i]. And some say: Not ialef /i, ibeit /i, ibeit /i, iyod /imeans bneither ietrog /i, nor eggs [ ibeitzim /i], nor fatty meat [ ibasar /i], nor old wine [ iyayin /i]. And some say neitherdoes one feed him bwhite wine because white wine bringsa bman tothe bimpurityof a seminal emission.,Similarly, bthe Sages taught:If a man experienced an emission that could render him ba izav /i, one attributesthe emission not to his being a izavbut perhaps to a different cause, e.g., bto food, or to all kinds of food,i.e., he may have eaten too much food, which could have caused the emission. bElazar ben Pineḥas says in the name of Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira:During the days that a izavis examining himself to determine whether or not he is impure, bone feeds him neitherfoods represented by the acrostic: iḤet /i, igimmel /i, ibeit /i, iyod /i, norfoods represented by the acrostic: iGimmel /i, ibeit /i, imem /i, nor anyfood bitems thatmight bbring him to impuritycaused by an emission. The Gemara explains: bNot iḥet /i, igimmel /i, ibeit /i, iyod /imeans bneither milk [ iḥalav /i], nor cheese [ igevina /i], nor egg [ ibeitza /i], nor wine [ iyayin /i]. And not igimmel /i, ibeit /i, imem /imeans bneither soup of pounded beans [ imei gerisin /i], nor fatty meat [ ibasar /i], norsmall bfishpickled bin brine [ imuryas /i]. /b,The Gemara asks about the phrase: bNor anyfood bitems thatmight bbring him to impurity; what does itcome bto include? Itcomes bto include that which the Sages taught: Fivefood bitems bringa bman toa state of bimpuritydue to emission. bAnd these are: Garlic, /b |
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32. Anon., 4 Baruch, 3.8, 3.14, 4.11, 6.13-6.15, 6.22, 7.25-7.26
| 3.8. And Jeremiah said: Behold, Lord, now we know that you are delivering the city into the hands of its enemies, and they will take the people away to Babylon. What do you want me to do with the holy vessels of the temple service? 3.14. And the Lord said to Jeremiah: Send him to the vineyard of Agrippa, and I will hide him in the shadow of the mountain until I cause the people to return to the city. 4.11. When he had said this, Baruch departed from the city, weeping andsaying: Grieving because of you, Jerusalem, I went out from you. 6.13. We beseech and beg of your goodness -- you whose great name no one is able to know -- hear the voice of your servants and let knowledge come into our hearts. 6.13. These, then, are the words which the Lord, the God of Israel, spoke, who led us out of Egypt, out of the great furnace: Because you did not keep my ordices, but your heart was lifted up, and you were haughty before me, in anger and wrath I delivered you to the furnace in Babylon. 6.14. What shall we do, and how shall we send this report to Jeremiah in Babylon? 6.15. And while Baruch was still praying, behold an angel of the Lord cameand said all these words to Baruch: Agent of the light, do not be anxious about how you will send to Jeremiah; for an eagle is coming to you at the hour of light tomorrow, and you will direct him to Jeremiah. 6.22. And he sent his angel to me, and he told me these words which I send to you. 7.25. For you have been found righteous before God, and he did not let you come here, lest you see the affliction which has come upon the people at the hands of the Babylonians. 7.26. For it is like a father with an only son, who is given over for punishment; and those who see his father and console him cover his face, lest he see how his son is being punished, and be even more ravaged by grief. |
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