1. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 21.23, 32.18 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
21.23. לֹא־תָלִין נִבְלָתוֹ עַל־הָעֵץ כִּי־קָבוֹר תִּקְבְּרֶנּוּ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא כִּי־קִלְלַת אֱלֹהִים תָּלוּי וְלֹא תְטַמֵּא אֶת־אַדְמָתְךָ אֲשֶׁר יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לְךָ נַחֲלָה׃ 32.18. צוּר יְלָדְךָ תֶּשִׁי וַתִּשְׁכַּח אֵל מְחֹלְלֶךָ׃ | 21.23. his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt surely bury him the same day; for he that is hanged is a reproach unto God; that thou defile not thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance." 32.18. of the Rock that begot thee thou wast unmindful, And didst forget God that bore thee. ." |
|
2. Hebrew Bible, Genesis, 9.6 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
9.6. שֹׁפֵךְ דַּם הָאָדָם בָּאָדָם דָּמוֹ יִשָּׁפֵךְ כִּי בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים עָשָׂה אֶת־הָאָדָם׃ | 9.6. Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God made He man." |
|
3. Hebrew Bible, Psalms, 48.7 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
48.7. רְעָדָה אֲחָזָתַם שָׁם חִיל כַּיּוֹלֵדָה׃ | 48.7. Trembling took hold of them there, Pangs, as of a woman in travail." |
|
4. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 47.6 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
47.6. קָצַפְתִּי עַל־עַמִּי חִלַּלְתִּי נַחֲלָתִי וָאֶתְּנֵם בְּיָדֵךְ לֹא־שַׂמְתְּ לָהֶם רַחֲמִים עַל־זָקֵן הִכְבַּדְתְּ עֻלֵּךְ מְאֹד׃ | 47.6. I was wroth with My people, I profaned Mine inheritance, And gave them into thy hand; Thou didst show them no mercy; Upon the aged hast thou very heavily Laid thy yoke." |
|
5. Hebrew Bible, Jeremiah, 4.31 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
4.31. כִּי קוֹל כְּחוֹלָה שָׁמַעְתִּי צָרָה כְּמַבְכִּירָה קוֹל בַּת־צִיּוֹן תִּתְיַפֵּחַ תְּפָרֵשׂ כַּפֶּיהָ אוֹי־נָא לִי כִּי־עָיְפָה נַפְשִׁי לְהֹרְגִים׃ | 4.31. For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, The anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, The voice of the daughter of Zion, that gaspeth for breath, That spreadeth her hands: ‘Woe is me, now! for my soul fainteth Before the murderers.’" |
|
6. Mishnah, Yevamot, 6.6 (1st cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)
| 6.6. A man shall not abstain from procreation unless he already has children. Beth Shammai says: two males, And Beth Hillel says: male and a female, for it says, “Male and female created he them” (Genesis 5:2). If a man married a woman and lived with her for ten years and she bore no child, he may not abstain [any longer from the duty of propagation]. If he divorced her she is permitted to marry another, and the second husband may also live with her for ten years. If she miscarried [the period of ten years] is counted from the time of her miscarriage. A man is commanded concerning the duty of propagation but not a woman. Rabbi Yoha ben Beroka says: Concerning both of them it is said, “And God blessed them; and said to them… “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28)." |
|
7. Quintilian, Institutes of Oratory, 3.8 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
|
8. Anon., Leviticus Rabba, 21.8, 34.3 (2nd cent. CE - 5th cent. CE)
34.3. דָּבָר אַחֵר, וְכִי יָמוּךְ, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (משלי יא, יז): גֹּמֵל נַפְשׁוֹ אִישׁ חָסֶד, זֶה הִלֵּל הַזָּקֵן, שֶׁבְּשָׁעָה שֶׁהָיָה נִפְטַר מִתַּלְמִידָיו הָיָה מְהַלֵּךְ וְהוֹלֵךְ עִמָּם, אָמְרוּ לוֹ תַּלְמִידָיו רַבֵּנוּ לְהֵיכָן אַתָּה הוֹלֵךְ אָמַר לָהֶם לַעֲשׂוֹת מִצְוָה, אָמְרוּ לוֹ וְכִי מַה מִּצְוָה זוֹ, אָמַר לָהֶן לִרְחֹץ בְּבֵית הַמֶּרְחָץ, אָמְרוּ לוֹ וְכִי זוֹ מִצְוָה הִיא, אָמַר לָהֶם, הֵן. מָה אִם אִיקוֹנִין שֶׁל מְלָכִים שֶׁמַּעֲמִידִים אוֹתָן בְּבָתֵּי טַרְטִיאוֹת וּבְבָתֵּי קִרְקָסִיאוֹת, מִי שֶׁנִּתְמַנֶּה עֲלֵיהֶם הוּא מוֹרְקָן וְשׁוֹטְפָן וְהֵן מַעֲלִין לוֹ מְזוֹנוֹת, וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁהוּא מִתְגַּדֵּל עִם גְּדוֹלֵי מַלְכוּת, אֲנִי שֶׁנִּבְרֵאתִי בְּצֶלֶם וּבִדְמוּת, דִּכְתִיב (בראשית ט, ו): כִּי בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים עָשָׂה אֶת הָאָדָם, עַל אַחַת כַּמָּה וְכַמָּה. דָּבָר אַחֵר, גֹּמֵל נַפְשׁוֹ אִישׁ חָסֶד, זֶה הִלֵּל הַזָּקֵן, שֶׁבְּשָׁעָה שֶׁהָיָה נִפְטַר מִתַּלְמִידָיו הָיָה מְהַלֵּךְ וְהוֹלֵךְ עִמָּם, אָמְרוּ לוֹ תַּלְמִידָיו רַבֵּנוּ לְהֵיכָן אַתָּה הוֹלֵךְ, אָמַר לָהֶם לִגְמֹל חֶסֶד עִם הָדֵין אַכְסַנְיָא בְּגוֹ בֵּיתָא. אָמְרוּ לוֹ, כָּל יוֹם אִית לָךְ אַכְסַנְיָא, אָמַר לָהֶם, וְהָדֵין נַפְשָׁא עֲלוּבְתָּא לָאו אַכְסַנְיָא הוּא בְּגוֹ גוּפָא, יוֹמָא דֵין הִיא הָכָא לְמָחָר לֵית הִיא הָכָא. דָּבָר אַחֵר (משלי יא, יז): גֹּמֵל נַפְשׁוֹ אִישׁ חָסֶד וְעֹכֵר שְׁאֵרוֹ אַכְזָרִי, אָמַר רַבִּי אֲלֶכְּסַנְדְּרִי זֶה שֶׁמַּגַעַת לוֹ שִׂמְחָה וְאֵינוֹ מַדְבִּיק אֶת קְרוֹבָיו עִמּוֹ מִשּׁוּם עֲנִיּוּת. אָמַר רַבִּי נַחְמָן כְּתִיב (דברים טו, י): כִּי בִּגְלַל הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, גַּלְגַּל הוּא שֶׁחוֹזֵר בָּעוֹלָם, לְפִיכָךְ משֶׁה מַזְהִיר אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְכִי יָמוּךְ אָחִיךָ. | 34.3. Another Thing: 'But if he is impoverished', here it is written, \"The merciful man does good to his own soul (Proverbs 11:17),\" this [refers to] Hillel the Elder, who, at the time that he was departing from his students, would walk with them. They said to him, \"Rabbi, where are you walking to?\" He said to them, \"To fulfill a commandment!\" They said to him, \"And what commandment is this?\" He said to them, \"To bathe in the bathhouse.\" They said to him: \"But is this really a commandment?\" He said to them: \"Yes. Just like regarding the statues (lit. icons) of kings, that are set up in the theaters and the circuses, the one who is appointed over them bathes them and scrubs them, and they give him sustece, and furthermore, he attains status with the leaders of the kingdom; I, who was created in the [Divine] Image and Form, as it is written, \"For in the Image of G-d He made Man (Genesis 9:6),\" even more so!..." |
|
9. Anon., Sifre Deuteronomy, 322 (2nd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
|
10. Anon., Sifre Numbers, 82 (2nd cent. CE - 4th cent. CE)
|
11. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
19a. ואי ס"ד דלא ידעי כי אמר להו מאי הוי אלא מאי דידעי למה לי' למימר להו לאחזוקי ליה טיבותא למשה,אמר רבי יצחק כל המספר אחרי המת כאלו מספר אחרי האבן איכא דאמרי דלא ידעי ואיכא דאמרי דידעי ולא איכפת להו,איני והא אמר רב פפא חד אישתעי מילתא בתריה דמר שמואל ונפל קניא מטללא ובזעא לארנקא דמוחיה,שאני צורבא מרבנן דקודשא בריך הוא תבע ביקריה,אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי כל המספר אחר מטתן של תלמידי חכמים נופל בגיהנם שנא' (תהלים קכה, ה) והמטים עקלקלותם יוליכם ה' את פועלי האון שלום על ישראל אפילו בשעה ששלום על ישראל יוליכם ה' את פועלי האון,תנא דבי ר' ישמעאל אם ראית תלמיד חכם שעבר עבירה בלילה אל תהרהר אחריו ביום שמא עשה תשובה שמא סלקא דעתך אלא ודאי עשה תשובה והני מילי בדברים שבגופו אבל בממונא עד דמהדר למריה:,ואמר ר' יהושע בן לוי בכ"ד מקומות בית דין מנדי' על כבוד הרב וכולן שנינו במשנתנו אמר ליה ר' אלעזר היכא אמר ליה לכי תשכח,נפק דק ואשכח תלת המזלזל בנטילת ידים והמספר אחר מטתן של תלמידי חכמי' והמגיס דעתו כלפי מעלה,המספר אחר מטתן של תלמידי חכמים מאי היא דתנן הוא היה אומר אין משקין לא את הגיורת ולא את המשוחררת וחכמים אומרים משקין ואמרו לו מעשה בכרכמית שפחה משוחררת בירושלים והשקוה שמעיה ואבטליון ואמר להם דוגמא השקוה ונדוהו ומת בנדויו וסקלו בית דין את ארונו,והמזלזל בנטילת ידים מאי היא דתנן א"ר יהודה חס ושלום שעקביא בן מהללאל נתנדה שאין עזרה ננעלת על כל אדם בישראל בחכמה ובטהרה וביראת חטא כעקביא בן מהללאל אלא את מי נדו את אלעזר בן חנוך שפקפק בנטילת ידים וכשמת שלחו בית דין והניחו אבן גדולה על ארונו ללמדך שכל המתנדה ומת בנדויו ב"ד סוקלין את ארונו,המגיס דעתו כלפי מעלה מאי היא דתנן שלח לו שמעון בן שטח לחוני המעגל צריך אתה להתנדות ואלמלא חוני אתה גוזרני עליך נדוי אבל מה אעשה שאתה מתחטא לפני המקום ועושה לך רצונך כבן שמתחטא לפני אביו ועושה לו רצונו ועליך הכתוב אומר (משלי כג, כה) ישמח אביך ואמך ותגל יולדתך,ותו ליכא והא איכא דתני רב יוסף תודוס איש רומי הנהיג את בני רומי להאכילן גדיים מקולסין בלילי פסחים שלח ליה שמעון בן שטח אלמלא תודוס אתה גוזרני עליך נדוי שאתה מאכיל את ישראל קדשים בחוץ,במשנתנו קאמרינן והא ברייתא היא,ובמתני' ליכא והא איכא הא דתנן חתכו חוליות ונתן חול בין חוליא לחוליא ר' אליעזר מטהר וחכמים מטמאים וזהו תנורו של עכנאי,מאי עכנאי אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל מלמד שהקיפוהו הלכות כעכנאי זה וטמאוהו,ותניא אותו היום הביאו כל טהרות שטיהר ר"א ושרפום לפניו ולבסוף ברכוהו,אפילו הכי נדוי במתני' לא תנן אלא בכ"ד מקומות היכא משכחת לה ר' יהושע בן לוי מדמה מילתא למילתא ור' אלעזר לא מדמה מילתא למילתא:, נושאי המטה וחלופיהן: ת"ר אין מוציאין את המת סמוך לק"ש ואם התחילו אין מפסיקין איני והא רב יוסף אפקוהו סמוך לק"ש אדם חשוב שאני:,שלפני המטה ושלאחר המטה: ת"ר העוסקים בהספד בזמן שהמת מוטל לפניהם נשמטין אחד אחד וקורין אין המת מוטל לפניהם הן יושבין וקורין והוא יושב ודומם הם עומדים ומתפללין והוא עומד ומצדיק עליו את הדין ואומר רבון העולמים הרבה חטאתי לפניך ולא נפרעת ממני אחד מני אלף יהי רצון מלפניך ה' אלהינו שתגדור פרצותינו ופרצות כל עמך בית ישראל ברחמים,אמר אביי לא מבעי ליה לאינש למימר הכי דארשב"ל וכן תנא משמיה דרבי יוסי לעולם אל יפתח אדם פיו לשטן,ואמר רב יוסף מאי קראה שנאמר (ישעיהו א, ט) כמעט כסדום היינו מאי אהדר להו נביא שמעו דבר ה' קציני סדום:,קברו את המת וחזרו וכו': אם יכולים להתחיל ולגמור את כולה אין אבל פרק אחד או פסוק אחד לא ורמינהו קברו את המת וחזרו אם יכולין להתחיל ולגמור אפילו פרק אחד או פסוק אחד,הכי נמי קאמר אם יכולין להתחיל ולגמור אפי' פרק אחד או אפילו פסוק אחד עד שלא יגיעו לשורה יתחילו ואם לאו לא יתחילו | 19a. bAnd if it should enter your mind thatthe dead bdo not know, then what of it if he tells them?The Gemara rejects this: bRather whatwill you say, bthatthey bknow?Then bwhy does heneed bto tell them?The Gemara replies: This is not difficult, as he is telling them so that bthey will give credit to Moses. /b,On this subject, bRabbi Yitzḥak said: Anyone who speaksnegatively bafter the deceased it is as ifhe bspeaks after the stone.The Gemara offers two interpretations of this: bSome saythis is because the dead bdo not know, and some saythat bthey know,but bthey do not carethat they are spoken of in such a manner.,The Gemara asks: bIs that so? Didn’t Rav Pappa say:There was once bsomeone who spokedisparagingly bafterthe death of bMar Shmuel and a reed fell from the ceiling, fracturing his skull?Obviously, the dead care when people speak ill of them.,The Gemara rejects this: This is no proof that the dead care. Rather, a bTorah scholar is different, as GodHimself bdemandsthat bhis honorbe upheld.,Rabbi Yehoshua bben Levi saidsimilarly: bOne who speaksdisparagingly bafter the biers of Torah scholarsand maligns them after their death will bfall in Gehenna, as it is stated: “But those who turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord will lead them away with the workers of iniquity; peace be upon Israel”(Psalms 125:5). bEvenif he speaks ill of them bwhen there is peace upon Israel,after death, when they are no longer able to fight those denouncing them ( iTosafot /i); nevertheless bthe Lord will lead them away with the workers of iniquity,to Gehenna.,On a similar note, bit was taught in the school of Rabbi Yishmael: If you saw aTorah bscholar transgress a prohibition at night, do not thinkbadly bof him during the day; perhaps he has repentedin the meantime. The Gemara challenges this: bDoes it enter your mindthat only bperhapshe has repented? Shouldn’t he be given the benefit of the doubt? bRather, he has certainly repented.The Gemara notes: bThe ideathat one must always give a Torah scholar the benefit of the doubt and assume that he has repented refers specifically to bmattersaffecting bhimself, but,if one witnesses a Torah scholar committing a transgression binvolving the propertyof another, one is not required to give him the benefit of the doubt. Rather, he should not assume that he has repented buntilhe sees him breturnthe money to bits owner. /b,Since matters relating to the respect due Torah scholars were raised, the Gemara continues, citing bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi,who bsaid: There are twenty-four places in which the court ostracizes overmatters of brespectdue bthe rabbi, and we learned them all in our Mishna. Rabbi Elazar said to him: Whereare those cases to be found? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi bsaid to him: Whenyou look, byouwill bfindthem., bHe went out, analyzed, and found threeexamples: bOne who demeansthe ritual of bwashing of the hands, one who speaksdisparagingly bafter the bier of Torah scholars, and one who is arrogant vis-à-vis Heaven.The Gemara cites sources for each of these cases., bWhat isthe source for bone who speaksdisparagingly bafter the biers of Torah scholars? As we learnedin the mishna: Akavya ben Mahalalel bwould say:In the case of a woman whose husband suspects her of adultery, who was warned by her husband not to seclude herself with another man and she did not listen (see Numbers 5), the court bdoes not administerthe bitter water potion of a isotato ba convert or an emancipatedmaidservant. bAnd the Rabbis say:The court badministersthe bitter water potion to them. bAndthe Rabbis bsaid to himas proof: bThere is the story of Kharkemit, an emancipated maidservant in Jerusalem, and Shemaya and Avtalyon administered herthe bitter waters. Akavya ben Mahalalel bsaid tothe Sages: That is no proof. Shemaya and Avtalyon, who were also from families of converts, required the maidservant bto drinkthe potion because she was blike them [ idugma /i]. Andsince Akavya ben Mahalalel cast aspersion on the deceased Torah scholars, bhe was ostracized and diedwhile bhewas still under the ban of bostracism. Andin accordance with the ihalakhawith regard to one who dies while under a ban of ostracism, the court bstoned his coffin.Apparently, one who deprecates a deceased Torah scholar is sentenced to ostracism.,And bwhat isthe source for bone who demeansthe ritual of bwashing of the hands? We learnedlater in the same mishna: bRabbi Yehuda said:That story related with regard to the ostracism of Akavya ben Mahalalel is completely untrue; bGod forbid that Akavya ben Mahalalel was ostracized, as the Temple courtyard is not closed on any Jew,meaning that even when all of Israel made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, when each of the three groups that gathered to offer the Paschal lamb filled the courtyard, leading the Temple administration to close the courtyard, there was no one there as perfect bin wisdom, purity and fear of sin as Akavya ben Mahalalel. Rather, whom did they excommunicate? Elazar ben Ḥanokh,because he bdoubtedand demeaned the rabbinic ordice of bwashing of the hands. And when he died, the court sentinstructions band they placed a large rock upon his coffinin order bto teach you that one who is ostracized and dies ina state of bostracism, the court stones his coffin,as if symbolically stoning him. Apparently, one who makes light of the ritual of washing of the hands is sentenced to ostracism., bWhat isthe source for the third case, bone who is arrogant vis-à-vis Heaven?The mishna relates that Ḥoni HaMe’aggel, the circle-drawer, drew a circle and stood inside it, and said that he would not leave the circle until it rained, and he went so far as to make demands in terms of the manner in which he wanted the rain to fall. After it rained, bShimon ben Shataḥ,the iNasiof the Sanhedrin, relayed to bḤoni HaMe’aggel:Actually, byou should be ostracizedfor what you said, band if you were not Ḥoni, I would have decreed ostracism upon you, but what can I do? You nag God and He does your bidding, like a son who nags his father andhis father bdoes his biddingwithout reprimand. After all, the rain fell as you requested. bAbout you, the verse states: “Your father and mother will be glad and she who bore you will rejoice”(Proverbs 23:25). Apparently, one who is arrogant vis-à-vis Heaven would ordinarily merit excommunication.,The Gemara challenges this: bAnd are there no morecases of excommunication or threats of excommunication? bSurely there areadditional cases like the one in the ibaraita btaught by Rav Yosef:It is told that bTheodosius of Rome,leader of the Jewish community there, binstituted the custom for the RomanJews bto eat whole kids,young goats roasted with their entrails over their heads, as was the custom when roasting the Paschal lamb, bon the eve of Passover,as they did in the Temple. bShimon ben Shataḥ senta message bto him: If you were not Theodosius,an important person, bI would have decreed ostracism upon you, asit appears as if byou are feeding Israel consecrated food,which may only be eaten in and around the Temple itself, boutsidethe Temple.,The Gemara responds: This case should not be included, as Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said that there were twenty-four cases bin our Mishna,and bthis ismerely ba ibaraita /i. /b,The Gemara asks: bAnd are there none in the Mishna? Isn’t there that which we learnedin the mishna: bOnewho bcutan earthenware oven horizontally bintoring-shaped bpieces and put sand between the pieces, Rabbi Eliezer deemsthe oven britually pure,i.e., it is no longer susceptible to ritual impurity. He holds that, although the fragments of the oven were pieced together, it is not considered an intact vessel but, rather, as a collection of fragments, and a broken earthenware vessel cannot become ritually impure. bAnd the Rabbis deem it ritually impure.Since the oven continues to serve its original function, it is still considered a single entity and a whole vessel despite the sand put between the pieces. bAnd this iscalled bthe oven of iakhnai /i, snake. /b,The Gemara asks: bWhat isthe meaning of oven of the bsnake? Rav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said:It is called snake bto teach thatthe Rabbis bsurroundedRabbi Eliezer bwith ihalakhotand proofs blike a snakesurrounds its prey, band declaredthe oven and its contents britually impure. /b, bAnd it was taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOn that day, they gathered allof bthe ritually purefood items that had come into contact with the oven bthat Rabbi Eliezer had declared ritually pure, and burned them before him,and because he did not accept the decision of the majority, bin the end they “blessed,”a euphemism for ostracized, bhim.This is another case that ended in ostracism.,The Gemara answers: bEven so, we did not learnthe ruling with regard to his bostracism in the mishna.The Gemara asks: Then bwhere do you findthe btwenty-four placesmentioned in Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s statement? The Gemara responds: bRabbi Yehoshua ben Levi likens one matter to anothersimilar bmatter.Whenever he would encounter a case in a mishna where one of the Sages expressed himself inappropriately in reference to other Sages, he concluded that they should have been excommunicated. bRabbi Elazar does not liken one matter to anothersimilar bmatter,and therefore located only three explicit cases of ostracism.,We learned in the mishna that bthe pallbearers and their replacementsare exempt from the recitation of iShema /i. On this subject, the Gemara cites that which the bSages taughtin a ibaraita /i: bThe deceased may not be taken outto be buried badjacent tothe time for bthe recitation of iShema /i,but should be buried later. bAnd if theyalready bstartedto take him out, bthey need not stopin order to recite iShema /i. The Gemara challenges: bIs that so? Didn’t they take Rav Yosef outto be buried badjacent tothe time for bthe recitation of iShema /i?The Gemara resolves this contradiction: The case of ban important person is different,and they are more lenient in order to honor him at his burial.,In the mishna, we learned the ihalakhawith regard to the pallbearers and their obligation to recite iShema /i, and a distinction was made between those bwho are before the bier andthose bafter the bier. Our Rabbis taughtin a ibaraita /i: bThose involved in eulogy must slip awayfrom the eulogy bone by one while the deceased is laid out before them and recite iShemaelsewhere. And bif the deceased is not laid out before them,the eulogizers must bsit and recite iShema bwhilethe bereaved bsits silently. They stand and pray and he stands and justifies God’s judgment, saying: Master of the Universe, I have sinned greatly against You, and You have not collected even one one-thousandthof my debt. bMay it be Your will, Lord our God, to mercifully repair the breaches in ourfence band the breaches of Your nation, the House of Israel. /b, bAbaye said: A person should not say that, as Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said, and it was also taught in the name of Rabbi Yosei: One must never open his mouth to the Satan,i.e., one must not leave room for or raise the possibility of disaster or evil. This formula, which states that the entire debt owed due to his transgressions has not been collected, raises the possibility that further payment will be exacted from him., bAnd Rav Yosef said: What is the versefrom which bitis derived? bAs it is stated: “We should have almost been as Sodom,we should have been like unto Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:9), after which bwhat didthe prophet breply to them? “Hear the word of the Lord, rulers of Sodom;give ear unto the law of our God, people of Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:10).,We learned in the mishna that, in a case when bthey buried the deceased and returned,if they have sufficient time to begin to recite iShemaand conclude before they arrive at the row formed by those who came to console the bereaved, they should begin. Here, the Gemara clarifies: This is the case only bif they can begin and completerecitation of iShema bin its entirety. However,if they can only complete bone chapter or one verse,they should bnotstop to do so. The Gemara braises a contradictionfrom that which we learned in the ibaraita /i: After bthey buried the deceased and returned, if they can beginthe recitation of iShema band finish even a single chapter or verse,they should begin.,The Gemara responds: bThat is also whatthe itannaof the mishna bsaidand this is the conclusion drawn from his statement: bIf one can begin and conclude even one chapter or one verse before they arrive at the rowof consolers, bthey should begin. And if not, they should not begin. /b |
|
12. Babylonian Talmud, Eruvin, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
21b. הבכורות והדוד (ה) אחד תאנים רעות מאד אשר לא תאכלנה מרוע,תאנים הטובות אלו צדיקים גמורים תאנים הרעות אלו רשעים גמורים ושמא תאמר אבד סברם ובטל סיכוים ת"ל הדודאים נתנו ריח אלו ואלו עתידין שיתנו ריח,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (שיר השירים ז, יד) הדודאים נתנו ריח אלו בחורי ישראל שלא טעמו טעם חטא,ועל פתחינו כל מגדים אלו בנות ישראל שמגידות פתחיהן לבעליהן ל"א שאוגדות פתחיהן לבעליהן,חדשים גם ישנים דודי צפנתי לך אמרה כנסת ישראל לפני הקב"ה רבונו של עולם הרבה גזירות גזרתי על עצמי יותר ממה שגזרת עלי וקיימתים,א"ל רב חסדא לההוא מדרבנן דהוה קא מסדר אגדתא קמיה מי שמיע לך חדשים גם ישנים מהו אמר ליה אלו מצות קלות ואלו מצות חמורות,א"ל וכי תורה פעמים פעמים ניתנה אלא הללו מדברי תורה והללו מדברי סופרים,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (קהלת יב, יב) ויותר מהמה בני הזהר עשות ספרים הרבה וגו' בני הזהר בדברי סופרים יותר מדברי תורה שדברי תורה יש בהן עשה ולא תעשה ודברי סופרים כל העובר על דברי סופרים חייב מיתה,שמא תאמר אם יש בהן ממש מפני מה לא נכתבו אמר קרא עשות ספרים הרבה אין קץ,(קהלת יב, יב) ולהג הרבה יגיעת בשר א"ר פפא בריה דרב אחא בר אדא משמיה דרב אחא בר עולא מלמד שכל המלעיג על דברי חכמים נידון בצואה רותחת,מתקיף לה רבא מי כתיב לעג להג כתיב אלא כל ההוגה בהן טועם טעם בשר,תנו רבנן מעשה בר"ע שהיה חבוש בבית האסורין והיה ר' יהושע הגרסי משרתו בכל יום ויום היו מכניסין לו מים במדה יום אחד מצאו שומר בית האסורין אמר לו היום מימך מרובין שמא לחתור בית האסורין אתה צריך שפך חציין ונתן לו חציין,כשבא אצל ר"ע אמר לו יהושע אין אתה יודע שזקן אני וחיי תלויין בחייך,סח לו כל אותו המאורע אמר לו תן לי מים שאטול ידי אמר לו לשתות אין מגיעין ליטול ידיך מגיעין אמר לו מה אעשה שחייבים עליהן מיתה מוטב אמות מיתת עצמי ולא אעבור על דעת חבירי,אמרו לא טעם כלום עד שהביא לו מים ונטל ידיו כששמעו חכמים בדבר אמרו מה בזקנותו כך בילדותו על אחת כמה וכמה ומה בבית האסורין כך שלא בבית האסורין על אחת כמה וכמה,אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל בשעה שתיקן שלמה עירובין ונטילת ידים יצתה בת קול ואמרה (משלי כג, טו) בני אם חכם לבך ישמח לבי גם אני ואומר (משלי כז, יא) חכם בני ושמח לבי ואשיבה חרפי דבר,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (שיר השירים ז, יב) לכה דודי נצא השדה נלינה בכפרים נשכימה לכרמים נראה אם פרחה הגפן פתח הסמדר הנצו הרמונים שם אתן את דודי לך,לכה דודי נצא השדה אמרה כנסת ישראל לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע אל תדינני כיושבי כרכים שיש בהן גזל ועריות ושבועת שוא ושבועת שקר נצא השדה בא ואראך תלמידי חכמים שעוסקין בתורה מתוך הדחק,נלינה בכפרים אל תקרי בכפרים אלא בכופרים בא ואראך אותם שהשפעת להן טובה והן כפרו בך,נשכימה לכרמים אלו בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות נראה אם פרחה הגפן אלו בעלי מקרא פתח הסמדר אלו בעלי משנה הנצו הרמונים אלו בעלי גמרא שם אתן את דודי לך אראך כבודי וגודלי שבח בני ובנותי,אמר רב המנונא מאי דכתיב (מלכים א ה, יב) וידבר שלשת אלפים משל ויהי שירו חמשה ואלף מלמד שאמר שלמה על כל דבר ודבר של תורה שלשת אלפים משל על כל דבר ודבר של סופרים חמשה ואלף טעמים,דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (קהלת יב, ט) ויותר שהיה קהלת חכם עוד לימד דעת את העם [ו] איזן וחקר תיקן משלים הרבה לימד דעת את העם דאגמריה בסימני טעמים ואסברה במאי דדמי ליה,[ו] איזן וחקר תיקן משלים הרבה אמר עולא אמר רבי אליעזר בתחילה היתה תורה דומה לכפיפה שאין לה אזנים עד שבא שלמה ועשה לה אזנים,קווצותיו תלתלים אמר רב חסדא אמר מר עוקבא מלמד שיש לדרוש על כל קוץ וקוץ תילי תילים של הלכות,שחורות כעורב במי אתה מוצאן במי | 21b. bthat are first ripe, and the other basket [ idud /i] had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten”(Jeremiah 24:1–2)., bGood figs, these arethe bfull-fledged righteouspeople; bbad figs, these arethe bfull-fledged wickedpeople. bAnd lest you say that the hopeof the wicked bis lost and their prospect is void, the verse states,interpreting the word iduda’imhomiletically: b“The baskets [ iduda’im /i] yield a fragrance”(Song of Songs 7:14), meaning that bboth of them,the righteous and the wicked, bwill eventually yield a fragrance. /b, bRava interpretedthe verse cited above bhomileticallyas follows: bWhat isthe meaning of that bwhich is written:“The mandrakes [ iduda’im /i] yield a fragrance, and at our doors are all manner of choice fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for you, O my beloved” (Song of Songs 7:14)? b“The mandrakes [ iduda’im /i] yield a fragrance,” these are the young men of Israel who have never tasted the taste of sin. /b, b“And at our doors [ ipetaḥeinu /i] are all manner of choice fruits [ imegadim /i],” these are the daughters of Israel who inform [ imaggidot /i] their husbands about their passageway [ ipit’ḥeihen /i],i.e., they tell them when they are menstruating. bAnother versionof this interpretation is: bThey bind [ iogedot /i] their passagewayand save it bfor their husbands,and do not have relations with others., b“New and old, which I have laid up for you, O my beloved,” the Congregation of Israel said before the Holy One, Blessed be He,and continued: bMaster of the Universe, I have decreed many decrees upon myselfthrough the enactments and ordices of the Sages, bmore than what You decreed upon mein the Torah, band I have fulfilled them.These are the new laws which were added to the old ones stated in the Torah.,It was related that bRav Ḥisda said to one of the Sages who would arrange thetraditions of the iaggadabefore him: Did you hear whatthe meaning of: bNew and oldis? bHe said to him: These,the new, bare themore blenient mitzvot, and these,the old, bare themore bstringent mitzvot. /b,Rav Ḥisda bsaid to him:This cannot be so, bfor was the Torah given on twoseparate boccasions,i.e., were the more lenient and more stringent mitzvot given separately? bRather, these,the old, baremitzvot bfrom the Torah, and these,the new, bare from the Sages. /b, bRava expoundedanother verse in similar fashion: bWhat isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “And more than these, my son, be careful: of making many books [ isefarim /i]there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh” (Ecclesiastes 12:12)? bMy son, be carefulto fulfill bthe words of the Sages [ isoferim /i]even bmore than the words of the Torah. For the words of the Torah include positive and negativecommandments, and even with regard to the negative commandments, the violation of many of them is punishable only by lashes. bWhereaswith respect to bthe words of the Sages, anyone who transgresses the words of the Sages is liable toreceive the bdeathpenalty, as it is stated: “And whoever breaches through a hedge, a snake shall bite him” (Ecclesiastes 10:8), taking hedges to refer metaphorically to decrees., bLest you say: Ifthe words of the Sages bare of substanceand have such great importance, bwhy were they not writtenin the Torah, therefore, bthe verse states: “of making many books there is no end,”meaning that it is impossible to fully commit the Oral Torah to writing, as it is boundless.,What is the meaning of the words: b“And much study [ ilahag /i] is a weariness of the flesh”? Rav Pappa, son of Rav Aḥa bar Adda, said in the name of Rav Aḥa bar Ulla: This teaches that whoever mocks [ imalig /i] the words of the Sages will be sentenced to boiling excrement,which results from the weariness of the flesh of man., bRava strongly objects to thisexplanation: bIs it written: Mock [ ila’ag /i]? “ iLahag /i” isthe word that is bwritten. Rather,the verse must be understood in the opposite manner: bWhoever meditates [ ihogeh /i] upon them,the words of the Sages, bexperiencesenjoyment as if it had bthe taste of meat. /b,Concerning the significance of observing the words of the Sages, the Gemara relates: bThe Sages taughtin a ibaraita /i: bIt once happened that Rabbi Akiva was incarcerated in a prison, and Rabbi Yehoshua HaGarsi wouldcome to the prison to battend to hisneeds. bEvery dayhis disciples bwould bring him water in a measuredquantity. bOne day the prison guard metRabbi Yehoshua HaGarsi and bsaid to him:The amount of byour water today is morethan usual; bperhaps you needit bin order tosoften the walls and thus bundermine the prison. Hethen bpoured out halfthe water, band gave himthe other bhalfto take in to Rabbi Akiva., bWhenRabbi Yehoshua bcame to Rabbi Akiva,and the latter saw the small amount of water he had brought, bhe said to him: Yehoshua, do you not know that I am old, and my life depends on your life?No one else brings me water, so if you bring me less than I need, my life is endangered.,After Rabbi Yehoshua brelated to him the entire incident,Rabbi Akiva bsaid to him: Give me water so that I may wash my hands.Rabbi Yehoshua bsaid to him:The water that I brought bwill not suffice for drinking;how bwill it suffice for washing your hands? He said to him: What can I do; fortransgressing the words of the Sages and eating without first washing hands bone is liable toreceive the bdeathpenalty. And if so, it is bbetter that I should die my own deathby thirst, brather than transgress the opinion of my colleagueswho enacted that one must wash hands before eating., bThey saidthat bhe would not taste anything untilRabbi Yehoshua bbrought him water and he washed his hands. When the Sages heard about this, they said: If in his old ageand weakened state he is still bsometiculous in his observance of the mitzvot, bhow much more somust he have been bin his youth.And bif in prisonhe is bsoscrupulous in his behavior, bhow much more somust he have been bwhen not in prison. /b, bRav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said: At the time thatKing bSolomon institutedthe ordices of ieiruv /iof courtyards bandof bwashing handsto purify them from their impurity, which are added safeguards to the words of the Torah, ba Divine Voice emerged and saidin his praise: b“My son, if your heart is wise, My heart will be glad, even Mine”(Proverbs 23:15). bAnd it stateswith regard to him: b“My son, be wise and make My heart glad, that I may respond to he who taunts Me”(Proverbs 27:11).,The Gemara cites additional teachings that bRava interpreted homiletically: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine has flowered, if the grape blossoms have opened, if the pomegranates are in flower; there will I give you my loves”(Song of Songs 7:12–13)?,With regard to the words: b“Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field,” the Congregation of Israel said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, do not judge me like those who reside in large cities where there is robbery and licentiousness, and vain oaths and false oaths,but rather: b“Let us go forth into the field,” come and I will show You Torah scholars whowork the land but nonetheless bengage in Torahstudy, binpoverty and in bdistress. /b,With regard to the words, b“Let us lodge in the villages,” do not readthe phrase as: bIn the villages [ ibakefarim /i], but ratheras: bBy the deniers [ ibakoferim /i],meaning, bcome and I will show Youthe nations of the world, bwhom You showered with good, butyet bthey have denied You. /b, b“Let us get up early to the vineyards,” these are the synagogues and houses of study. “Let us see if the vine has flowered,” these are the masters of Bible,who are proficient in the first stage of Torah study. b“If the grape blossoms have opened,” these are the masters of Mishna. “If the pomegranates are in flower,” these are the masters of Gemara. “There will I give you my loves,”means bI will show You my glory and my greatness, the praise of my sons and daughters,how they adhere to sanctity.,The Gemara expounds further concerning King Solomon. bRav Hamnuna said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “And he spoke three thousand proverbs, and his poems were a thousand and five”(i Kings 5:12)? This bteaches that Solomon pronounced three thousand proverbs for each and every word of the Torah,and bone thousand and five reasons for each and every word of the Scribes. /b, bRavaalso btaught: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “And besides being wise, Koheleth also taught the people knowledge; and he weighed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs”(Ecclesiastes 12:9). Rava interpreted homiletically: bHe taught the people knowledge,meaning bhe taught it with the accentuation marksin the Torah, bandhe bexplainedeach matter bby means ofsomething bsimilar to it. /b,With regard to: b“And he weighed [ iizzen /i], and sought out, and set in order many proverbs,” Ulla saidthat bRabbi Eliezer said: At first the Torah was like a basket without handles [ ioznayim /i], until Solomon came and made handles for it.By means of his explanations and proverbs he enabled each person to understand and take hold of the Torah, fulfill its mitzvot, and distance himself from transgressions.,With regard to the verse, “His head is as the most fine gold, bhis locks [ ikevutzotav /i] are wavy [ italtalim /i],and black as a raven” (Song of Songs 5:11), bRav Ḥisda saidthat bMar Ukva said:This bteaches that it is possible to expound from each and every stroke [ ikotz /i]of the letters in the Torah bmounds upon mounds [ itilei tilim /i] of laws. /b, bBlack [ isheḥorot /i] as a raven [ iorev /i]means: bIn whom do you findthe words of Torah? bIn him /b |
|
13. Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
20b. בניך יפיפין ביותר אמרה להן אינו מספר עמי לא בתחלת הלילה ולא בסוף הלילה אלא בחצות הלילה וכשהוא מספר מגלה טפח ומכסה טפח ודומה עליו כמי שכפאו שד,ואמרתי לו מה טעם ואמר לי כדי שלא אתן את עיני באשה אחרת ונמצאו בניו באין לידי ממזרות,לא קשיא הא במילי דתשמיש הא במילי אחרנייתא,אמר רבי יוחנן זו דברי יוחנן בן דהבאי אבל אמרו חכמים אין הלכה כיוחנן בן דהבאי אלא כל מה שאדם רוצה לעשות באשתו עושה משל לבשר הבא מבית הטבח רצה לאוכלו במלח אוכלו צלי אוכלו מבושל אוכלו שלוק אוכלו וכן דג הבא מבית הצייד,אמר אמימר מאן מלאכי השרת רבנן דאי תימא מלאכי השרת ממש אמאי אמר רבי יוחנן אין הלכה כיוחנן בן דהבאי הא אינהו בקיאי בצורת הולד טפי ואמאי קרו להו מלאכי השרת דמצייני כמלאכי השרת,ההיא דאתאי לקמיה דרבי אמרה לו רבי ערכתי לו שולחן והפכו אמר לה בתי תורה התירתך ואני מה אעשה ליך ההיא דאתאי לקמיה דרב אמרה לו רבי ערכתי לו שולחן והפכו אמר מאי שנא מן ביניתא,ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם מכאן אמר רבי אל ישתה אדם בכוס זה ויתן עיניו בכוס אחר אמר רבינא לא נצרכא אלא דאפילו שתי נשיו,וברותי מכם המורדים והפושעים בי אמר רבי לוי אלו בני תשע מדות בני אסנ"ת משגע"ח,בני אימה בני אנוסה בני שנואה בני נידוי בני תמורה בני מריבה בני שכרות בני גרושת הלב בני ערבוביא בני חצופה,איני והאמר רבי שמואל בר נחמני אמר רבי יונתן כל אדם שאשתו תובעתו הויין לו בנים שאפילו בדורו של משה רבינו לא היו כמותם שנאמר הבו לכם אנשים חכמים ונבונים וכתיב ואקח את ראשי שבטיכם ולא כתיב נבונים,וכתיב יששכר חמור גרם וכתיב מבני יששכר יודעי בינה לעתים,ההיא דמרציא ארצויי:, br br big strongהדרן עלך ואלו מותרין /strong /big br br,מתני׳ big strongארבעה /strong /big נדרים התירו חכמים נדרי זרוזין ונדרי הבאי ונדרי שגגות ונדרי אונסין נדרי זרוזין כיצד היה מוכר חפץ ואמר קונם שאיני פוחת לך מן הסלע והלה אומר קונם שאיני מוסיף לך על השקל | 20b. bare your children so beautiful? She said to them:My husband bdoes not converse with mewhile engaging in sexual intercourse, bneither at the beginning of the night nor at the end of the night,but brather at midnight. And when he converseswith me while engaging in sexual intercourse, bhe reveals a handbreadthof my body band covers a handbreadth, andhe covers himself up bas though he were being coerced by a demonand is covering himself out of fear., bAnd I said tomy husband: bWhat is the reasonfor this behavior? bAnd he said to me:It is bso that I will not set my eyes on another woman,i.e., think about another woman; if a man thinks about another woman during sexual intercourse with his wife, bhis children consequently comeclose btoreceiving ba imamzerstatus,i.e., the nature of their souls is tantamount to that of a imamzer /i. Therefore I engage in sexual intercourse with you at an hour when there are no people in the street, and in this manner. In any event, it can be seen from her words that a Sage conversed with his wife while engaging in sexual intercourse with her.,The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficult. Thispermission to converse with her is bwith regard to matters of sexual intercourse,whereas bthatrestriction of conversation is bwith regard to other mattersthat are not related to sexual intercourse., bRabbi Yoḥa said: That is the statement of Yoḥa ben Dehavai. However, the Rabbis said: The ihalakhais not in accordance withthe opinion of bYoḥa ben Dehavai. Rather, whatever a man wishes to do with his wife he may do.He may engage in sexual intercourse with her in any manner that he wishes, and need not concern himself with these restrictions. As ban allegory,it is blike meat that comes from the butcher.If bhe wants to eat it with salt, he may eat itthat way. If he wants to eat it broasted, he may eat itroasted. If he wants to eat it bcooked, he may eat itcooked. If he wants to eat it bboiled, he may eat itboiled. bAnd likewisewith regard to bfish that come from the fisherman. /b, bAmeimar said: Who are the ministering angelsthat Rabbi Yoḥa ben Dehavai mentioned? He was referring to bthe Sages,for whom he employed the honorary title: Ministering angels. bBecause if you saythat he was referring to bactual ministering angels, why did Rabbi Yoḥa saythat bthe ihalakhais not in accordance withthe opinion of bYoḥa ben Dehavai?The ministering angels bare more knowledgeable about the forming of the fetusthan people are. Clearly, if the ministering angels were the source for the ruling of Rabbi Yoḥa ben Dehavai it would have been imperative to heed his instructions. bAnd why arethe Sages bcalled ministering angels? Because they stand out like ministering angels,as they are recognized by their clothing.,The Gemara relates: bA certain woman, who came before RabbiYehuda HaNasi to complain about her husband, bsaid to him: My teacher, I set him a table,using a euphemism to say that she lay before him during intimacy, band he turned it over.Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi bsaid to her: My daughter, the Torah permittedhim to engage in sexual intercourse with byoueven in an atypical manner, band what can I do for youif he does so? Similarly, ba certain woman who came before Rav said to him: My teacher, I set a table for him and he turned it over. He saidto her: In bwhatway bisthis case bdifferent from a fish [ ibinnita /i]that one may eat any way he wishes?,§ The verse states: b“And that you not go about after your own heart”(Numbers 15:39). bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bsaidthat it is derived bfrom herethat ba man should not drink from this cup while setting his eyes on another cup,i.e., one should not engage in sexual intercourse with one woman while thinking about another woman. bRavina said:This statement is not necessary with regard to an unrelated woman. Rather, it bis necessary onlyto state bthat evenwith regard to bhisown btwo wives,he should not engage in sexual intercourse with one while thinking about the other.,The verse states: b“And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and those that transgress against Me”(Ezekiel 20:38). bRabbi Levi said: These are children ofthose who have bnine traits,who are defective from their conception and from whom rebels and transgressors emerge. The mnemonic for these nine traits is bchildren ofthe acronym ialeph /i, isamekh /i, inun /i, itav /i, imem /i, ishin /i, igimmel /i, iayin /i, iḥet /i. /b,The children of nine traits are as follows: bChildren of fear [ ieima /i],i.e., where the wife was afraid of her husband and engaged in sexual intercourse with him out of fear; bchildren of a woman who was raped [ ianusa /i]; children of a hated woman [ isenua /i],i.e., a woman who was hated by her husband; bchildren of ostracism [ iniddui /i],i.e., one of the parents was ostracized by the court; bchildren of substitution [ itemura /i],i.e., while engaging in intercourse with the woman, the man thought that she was another woman; bchildren of strife [ imeriva /i],i.e., the parents engaged in intercourse while they were quarreling; bchildren of drunkenness [ ishikhrut /i],i.e., the parents engaged in intercourse while they were drunk; bchildren of a woman who was divorced in the heart [ igerushat halev /i],i.e., the husband had already decided to divorce her when they engaged in intercourse; bchildren of mixture [ iirbuveya /i],i.e., the man did not know with which woman he was engaging in intercourse; bchildren of a shameless woman [ iḥatzufa /i]who demands of her husband that he engage in intercourse with her.,The Gemara asks: bIs that so? But didn’t Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani saythat bRabbi Yonatan said: Any man whose wife demands of himthat he engage in sexual intercourse with her bwill have children the likes of whom did not exist even in the generation of Moses our teacher? As it is stated: “Get you wise men, and understanding,and well known from each one of your tribes, and I will make them head over you” (Deuteronomy 1:13); band it is writtensubsequently: b“So I took the heads of your tribes,wise men, and well known” (Deuteronomy 1:15). bAnd it does not saythat they were bunderstanding.Evidently, even Moses could not find understanding men in his generation., bAndby contrast, bit is written: “Issachar is a large-boned donkey”(Genesis 49:14). The Sages transmitted a tradition that this is an allusion to the incident when Jacob came in from the field riding on a donkey, and Leah went out to greet him, saying: “You must come in to me; for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes” (Genesis 30:16). Issachar was conceived from their subsequent sexual intercourse. bAnd it is written: “And of the children of Issachar, men that had understanding of the times”(I Chronicles 12:33). The descendants of Issachar were understanding men. It is derived from here that a woman who demands from her husband that he engage in sexual intercourse with her has a positive effect on their children.,The Gemara answers: bThat ibaraitais not referring to a woman who demands intercourse explicitly, but rather to one bwho enticesher husband, so that he understands that she wants to engage in sexual intercourse with him. They consequently have excellent children.,, strongMISHNA: /strong bThe Sages dissolved fourtypes of bvowswithout the requirement of a request to a halakhic authority: bVows of exhortation, vows of exaggeration, vows that are unintentional, and vowswhose fulfillment is impeded by bcircumstances beyondone’s bcontrol.The mishna explains: bVows of exhortationare those by which one encourages another using vow terminology that is exaggerated. bHow so? One was selling an item and said: I will not lowerthe price bfor youto less bthan a isela /i,as bthat is ikonam /i,forbidden bas ifit were ban offering,for me. bAnd the other one,the buyer, bsays: I will not raisemy payment bto youto bmore than a shekel,as bthat is ikonam /ifor me. |
|
14. Babylonian Talmud, Pesahim, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
87b. דבלים דבה רעה בת דבה רעה ושמואל אמר שמתוקה בפי הכל כדבלה ורבי יוחנן אמר שהכל דשין בה כדבלה,דבר אחר גומר אמר רבי יהודה שבקשו לגמר ממונן של ישראל בימיה רבי יוחנן אמר בזזו וגמרו שנאמר (מלכים ב יג, ז) כי אבדם מלך ארם וישימם כעפר לדוש,(הושע א, ג) ותהר ותלד לו בן ויאמר ה' אליו קרא שמו יזרעאל כי עוד מעט ופקדתי את דמי יזרעאל על בית יהוא והשבתי ממלכות בית ישראל ותהר עוד ותלד בת ויאמר לו קרא שמה לא רוחמה כי לא אוסיף עוד ארחם את בית ישראל כי נשא אשא להם ותהר ותלד בן ויאמר (ה' אליו) קרא שמו לא עמי כי אתם לא עמי ואנכי לא אהיה לכם,לאחר שנולדו [לו] שני בנים ובת אחת אמר לו הקב"ה להושע לא היה לך ללמוד ממשה רבך שכיון שדברתי עמו פירש מן האשה אף אתה בדול עצמך ממנה אמר לו רבש"ע יש לי בנים ממנה ואין אני יכול להוציאה ולא לגרשה,א"ל הקב"ה ומה אתה שאשתך זונה ובניך [בני] זנונים ואין אתה יודע אם שלך הן אם של אחרים הן כך ישראל שהן בני בני בחוני בני אברהם יצחק ויעקב אחד מארבעה קנינין שקניתי בעולמי,תורה קנין אחד דכתיב (משלי ח, כב) ה' קנני ראשית דרכו שמים וארץ קנין אחד דכתיב (בראשית יד, יט) קונה שמים וארץ בית המקדש קנין אחד דכתיב (תהלים עח, נד) הר זה קנתה ימינו ישראל קנין אחד דכתיב (שמות טו, טז) עם זו קנית ואתה אמרת העבירם באומה אחרת,כיון שידע שחטא עמד לבקש רחמים על עצמו אמר לו הקב"ה עד שאתה מבקש רחמים על עצמך בקש רחמים על ישראל שגזרתי עליהם שלש גזירות בעבורך,עמד ובקש רחמים ובטל גזירה והתחיל לברכן שנאמר (הושע ב, א) והיה מספר בני ישראל כחול הים וגו' והיה במקום אשר יאמר להם לא עמי אתם יאמר להם בני אל חי ונקבצו בני יהודה ובני ישראל יחדו וגו' (הושע ב, כה) וזרעתיה לי בארץ ורחמתי את לא רוחמה ואמרתי ללא עמי עמי אתה,אמר רבי יוחנן אוי לה לרבנות שמקברת את בעליה שאין לך כל נביא ונביא שלא קיפח ארבעה מלכים בימיו שנאמר (ישעיהו א, א) חזון ישעיהו בן אמוץ אשר חזה על יהודה וירושלים וגו',אמר ר' יוחנן מפני מה זכה ירבעם בן יואש מלך ישראל להמנות עם מלכי יהודה מפני שלא קבל לשון הרע על עמוס,מנלן דאימני דכתיב (הושע א, א) דבר ה' אשר היה אל הושע בן בארי בימי עוזיה יותם אחז יחזקיה מלכי יהודה ובימי ירבעם בן יואש מלך ישראל,ומנלן דלא קיבל לשון הרע דכתיב (עמוס ז, י) וישלח אמציה כהן בית אל אל ירבעם מלך ישראל לאמר קשר עליך וגו' וכתיב כי כה אמר עמוס בחרב ימות ירבעם וגו' אמר חס ושלום אמר אותו צדיק כך ואם אמר מה אעשה לו שכינה אמרה לו,אמר ר"א אפילו בשעת כעסו של הקב"ה זוכר את הרחמים שנאמר (הושע א, ו) כי לא אוסיף עוד ארחם את בית ישראל ר' יוסי בר ר' חנינא אמר מהכא כי נשא אשא להם,ואמר ר"א לא הגלה הקדוש ברוך הוא את ישראל לבין האומות אלא כדי שיתוספו עליהם גרים שנאמר (הושע ב, כה) וזרעתיה לי בארץ כלום אדם זורע סאה אלא להכניס כמה כורין,ור' יוחנן אמר מהכא (הושע ב, כה) ורחמתי את לא רוחמה,אמר רבי יוחנן משום ר' שמעון בן יוחי מאי דכתיב (משלי ל, י) אל תלשן עבד אל אדוניו פן יקללך ואשמת וכתיב (משלי ל, יא) דור אביו יקלל ואת אמו לא יברך משום דאביו יקלל ואת אמו לא יברך אל תלשן,אלא אפילו דור שאביו יקלל ואת אמו לא יברך אל תלשן עבד אל אדוניו מנלן מהושע,א"ר אושעיא מאי דכתיב (שופטים ה, יא) צדקת פרזונו בישראל צדקה עשה הקב"ה בישראל שפזרן לבין האומות והיינו דא"ל ההוא מינא לר' חנינא אנן מעלינן מינייכו כתיב בכו (מלכים א יא, טז) כי ששת חדשים ישב שם וגו' ואלו אנן איתינכו גבן כמה שני ולא קא עבדינן לכו מידי אמר לו רצונך יטפל לך תלמיד א',נטפל ליה ר' אושעיא א"ל משום דלא ידעיתו היכי תעבדו תכלינן כולהו ליתנהו גבייכו מאי דאיכא גבייכו קרי לכו מלכותא קטיעתא אמר ליה גפא דרומאי בהא נחתינן ובהא סלקינן:,תני רבי חייא מאי דכתיב (איוב כח, כג) אלהים הבין דרכה והוא ידע את מקומה יודע הקדוש ברוך הוא את ישראל שאינן יכולין לקבל גזירות אכזריות אדום לפיכך הגלה אותם לבבל ואמר רבי אלעזר לא הגלה הקדוש ברוך הוא את ישראל לבבל אלא מפני שעמוקה כשאול שנאמר (הושע יג, יד) מיד שאול אפדם ממות אגאלם רבי חנינא אמר מפני שקרוב לשונם ללשון תורה,רבי יוחנן אמר מפני ששיגרן לבית אמן משל לאדם שכעס על אשתו להיכן משגרה לבית אמה,והיינו דרבי אלכסנדרי דאמר שלשה חזרו למטעתן אלו הן ישראל כסף מצרים וכתב לוחות ישראל הא דאמרן כסף מצרים דכתיב (מלכים א יד, כה) ויהי בשנה החמישית למלך רחבעם עלה שישק מלך מצרים על ירושלים וגו' כתב הלוחות דכתיב (דברים ט, יז) ואשברם לעיניכם תנא לוחות נשברו ואותיות פורחות,עולא אמר כדי שיאכלו | 87b. bDiblaim”;the name Diblaim can be taken as the dual form of the word idibba /i, ill repute. It suggests that she was a woman of bill repute, daughter ofa woman of bill repute. And Shmuel said:The name Diblaim is the plural of the word ideveila /i, a cake of pressed figs, indicating that bshe was as sweet as a cake of pressed figs,and therefore everyone used her services. bRabbi Yoḥa,based on a similar derivation, bsaidthe name signifies bthat everyone would tread [ idashin /i] upon her,a euphemism for sexual relations, blike a cake of pressed figs. /b, bAlternatively,with regard to the name bGomer, Rav Yehuda said:The name can be understood as deriving from the root igamar /i, to finish. It alludes to the fact that the gentiles bsought to finish the money of the Jewish people in her days. Rabbi Yoḥa said:They did not just seek to do so, but were successful. bThey plundered and finishedit, bas it is stated: “For the king of Aram destroyed them and made them like the dust in threshing”(II Kings 13:7).,The passage in Hosea continues: b“And she conceived, and bore him a son. And the Lord said to him: Call his name Jezreel; for soon I will visit the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will obliterate the kingdom of the house of Israel…And she conceived again, and bore a daughter. And He said to him: Call her name Lo-ruhamah, for I will no more have compassion upon the house of Israel that I should bear them…And she conceived, and bore a son. And He said: Call his name Lo-ammi; for you are not My people, and I will not be yours”(Hosea 1:3–9)., bAfter two sons and one daughter had been born to him, the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Hosea: Shouldn’t you have learned fromthe example of byour master Moses, who, once I spoke with him, separated fromhis bwife? You too, separate yourself fromyour wife. bHe said to Him: Master of the Universe, I have sons from her and I am unable to dismiss her or to divorce her. /b,In response to Hosea’s show of loyalty to his family, bthe Holy One, Blessed be He,rebuked him and bsaid to him: Just as you, whose wife is a prostitute and your childrenfrom her bare children of prostitution, and you do noteven bknow if they are yoursor bif they arechildren bof othermen, despite this, you are still attached to them and will not forsake them, bsotoo, I am still attached to bthe Jewish people, who are My sons, the sons of Myfaithful who withstood bordeals, the sons of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.They are so special that they are bone of the four acquisitions that I acquired in My world. /b,The Gemara proceeds to enumerate all four: bTorah is one acquisition, as it is written: “The Lord acquired me as the beginning of His way”(Proverbs 8:22). bHeaven and earth are one acquisition [ ikinyan /i], as it is written:“Blessed be Abram of God Most High, bCreator [ ikoneh /i] of heaven and earth”(Genesis 14:19). bThe Holy Temple is one acquisition, as it is written:“And He brought them to His sacred border, bto this mountain, which His right hand had acquired”(Psalms 78:54). bThe Jewish people are one acquisition, as it is written: “The nation that You have acquired”(Exodus 15:16). bAnd you,Hosea, bsaidthat I should breplace them with another nation? /b, bOnceHosea brealized that he had sinned, he got up to requestthat God have bcompassion upon himfor having spoken ill of the Jewish people. bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, said to him: Before you request compassion upon yourself,first brequest compassion upon the Jewish people, since I havealready bdecreed upon them threeharsh bdecrees on your account,in response to your condemnation of them. There is an allusion to these three decrees in the names of the children born of the prostitute. Jezreel is an allusion to a decree for Jehu’s actions in the Jezreel Valley (see II Kings 9–10). Lo-ruhamah, one that had not received compassion, suggests that God will no longer have compassion for the Jewish people. Lo-ammi, not My people, indicates that the Jewish people will no longer be considered God’s people.,Hosea bstood and requested compassionupon the Jewish people band nullifiedthe bdecree.God responded band began to bless them, as it is stated: “Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea,which cannot be measured nor numbered. bAnd it will be that instead of that which was said to them: You are not My people, it shall be said to them: You are the children of the living God. And the children of Judea and the children of Israel shall be gathered together”(Hosea 2:1). bAnd I will sow her to Me in the land; and I will have compassion upon her that had not received compassion; and I will say to them that were not My people: You are My people”(Hosea 2:25)., bRabbi Yoḥa said: Woe to authority, whichshortens the life and bburies its holders.This is evident from the fact bthat you don’t have any prophet who did not outlast four kings in his lifetime,as the kings’ positions of authority caused them to die young. A prophet outliving four kings is demonstrated in the opening verses of Hosea, and similarly, bas it is statedwith regard to Isaiah: b“The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judea and Jerusalemin the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judea” (Isaiah 1:1)., bRabbi Yoḥa said: Due to whatreason was the less than righteous bJeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel, privileged to be countedin the verse together bwith therighteous bkings of Judea?It is bdue tothe fact bthat he did not accept slander about Amos. /b,The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive bthat he was countedtogether with the righteous kings of Judea? bAs it is written: “The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judea, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel”(Hosea 1:1)., bAnd from where do wederive bthat he did not accept slander? As it is written: “Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-El sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying: Amos has conspired against youin the midst of the house of Israel” (Amos 7:10). bAnd it is written: “For thus said Amos: Jeroboam shall die by the swordand Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land” (Amos 7:11). Jeroboam bsaid: Heaven forfendthat bthat righteous person,Amos, bsaid this,that I will die by the sword; band if heindeed bsaidit, bwhat shall I do to himand why should I punish him? bThe Divine Presence said it to him,and he is required to transmit his prophecy., bRabbi Elazar said: Even atthe btime ofthe banger of the Holy One, Blessed be He, He remembers theattribute of bcompassion, as it is stated: “For I will no more have compassion upon the house of Israel”(Hosea 1:6). Even when implementing His attribute of justice, God still mentions His attribute of compassion. bRabbi Yosei bar Rabbi Ḥanina saidthat this is also indicated bfrom here,from the continuation of the verse, which states: b“That I should bear them,”indicating that God promised to eventually bear Israel’s sins and pardon them., bAnd Rabbi Elazar said: The Holy One, Blessed be He, exiled Israel among the nations only so that converts would join them, as it is stated: “And I will sow her to Me in the land”(Hosea 2:25). bDoes a person sow a ise’a /iof grain for any reason other bthan to bring in several ikor /iof grain during the harvest? So too, the exile is to enable converts from the nations to join the Jewish people., bAnd Rabbi Yoḥa saidthat this idea may be derived bfrom here: “And I will have compassion upon her that had not received compassion;and I will say to them that were not My people: You are My people” (Hosea 2:25). Even those who were initially “not My people,” i.e., gentiles, will convert and become part of the Jewish nation., bRabbi Yoḥa said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: What isthe meaning of bthat which is written: “Slander not a servant to his master, lest he curse you, and you be found guilty”(Proverbs 30:10), band it isthen bwrittenin the next verse: b“There is a generation that curses its father, and does not bless its mother”(Proverbs 30:11). Is it bbecause they curse their father and do not bless their motherthat byou should not slanderthem? Clearly that is absurd., bRather,the juxtaposition serves to emphasize that bevenin a wicked bgeneration that curses its father and does not bless its mother, one should not slander a servant to his master. From where do wederive this? bFrom Hosea,whose criticism of the Jewish people, God’s servants, to God, their master, aroused His ire, despite the fact that it was a wicked generation., bRabbi Oshaya said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “The righteous acts of His rulers [ ipirzono /i] in Israel”(Judges 5:11)? bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, performed a charitable deed toward Israelin bthat He scattered them [ ipizran /i] among the nations;had He exiled them to one place, they could have all been destroyed at once. bAnd thisconcept bis that which a certain apostate said to Rabbi Ḥanina: Wegentiles bare superior to youJews in that we have patience. bIt is written of you: “ForJoab and all Israel bremained there six monthsuntil he had cut off every male in Edom” (I Kings 11:16), bwhereas we,although byou have been with us for several years, are not doing anything to you. He said to him:With byour consent, let one student deal with yourassertion and answer you., bRabbi Oshaya dealt with hisassertion and bsaid to him:This is not a sign of your righteousness but is simply bbecause you do not know how to doit, to destroy us. If you seek bto destroy all ofthe Jewish people, you cannot because bthey are notall bwith youin your kingdom. If you destroy only bthoseJews bwho are with youin your kingdom, byou will be called a severed kingdomfor murdering part of its own population. The apostate bsaid to him:I swear by bGappa,god bof the Romans, with thisproblem bwe lie down and with thisproblem bwe rise up,for we are constantly struggling with the dilemma of how to eliminate the Jewish people., bRabbi Ḥiyya teaches: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “God understands its ways and He knows its place”(Job 28:23)? bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, knows the Jewish people, who are unable to withstand theharsh bdecrees of the Romans. Therefore, He exiled them to Babylonia,whose people are less cruel. bAnd Rabbi Elazar said: The Holy One, Blessed be He, exiled Israel to Babylonia only due tothe fact bit isa land bas deep as the netherworld,i.e., it is a land of plains and valleys, which alludes to that bwhich is stated: “I shall ransom them from the power of the netherworld, I shall redeem them from death”(Hosea 13:14). bRabbi Ḥanina said: It is due tothe fact bthat their language,Aramaic, bis similar to the language of the Torah,which enables the Jews who live there to study Torah., bRabbi Yoḥa said: It is due tothe fact bthat He sent them to their mother’s house,i.e., the birthplace of the forefathers of the Jewish people, who lived in Aram-Nahara’im, which is in Babylonia. This is bcomparable to a man who is angry at his wife; to where does he send her?He sends her bto her mother’s house. /b, bAnd this isexpressed in the statement of bRabbi Alexandri, who said:There are bthreethat breturned to theirpoints of borigin,and bthese are they: The Jewish people, the money of Egypt, and the writingon the bTabletsof the Covet. bThe Jewish people; that which wejust bsaid,they returned to Babylonia. bThe money of Egypt; as it is written: “And it came to pass in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, that Shishak, king of Egypt, came up against Jerusalem;and he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house; he took everything” (I Kings 14:25–26). bThe writing on the Tabletsof the Covet; bas it is written:“And I took hold of the two tablets, and cast them out of my two hands, band broke them before your eyes”(Deuteronomy 9:17). And bit was taughtin the iTosefta /i: bThe tablets were broken and the letters are flyingand returning to their point of origin., bUlla saidthat Israel was exiled to Babylonia bin orderto enable them bto eat /b |
|
15. Babylonian Talmud, Qiddushin, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
29b. כל היכא דליכא אלא חמש סלעים הוא קודם לבנו מאי טעמא מצוה דגופיה עדיפא כי פליגי היכא דאיכא חמש משועבדים וחמש בני חורין,ר' יהודה סבר מלוה דכתיב בתורה ככתובה בשטר דמיא בהני חמש פריק לבריה ואזיל כהן וטריף ליה לחמש משועבדים לדידיה,ורבנן סברי מלוה דכתיב באורייתא לאו ככתובה בשטר דמיא והילכך מצוה דגופיה עדיף,ת"ר לפדות את בנו ולעלות לרגל פודה את בנו ואחר כך עולה לרגל ר' יהודה אומר עולה לרגל ואח"כ פודה את בנו שזו מצוה עוברת וזו מצוה שאינה עוברת,בשלמא לר' יהודה כדקאמר טעמא אלא רבנן מאי טעמייהו דאמר קרא (שמות לד, כ) כל בכור בניך תפדה והדר לא יראו פני ריקם,ת"ר מנין שאם היו לו חמשה בנים מחמש נשים שחייב לפדות כולן ת"ל כל בכור בניך תפדה פשיטא בפטר רחם תלא רחמנא,מהו דתימא נילף בכור בכור מנחלה מה להלן ראשית אונו אף כאן ראשית אונו קמ"ל:,ללמדו תורה: מנלן דכתיב (דברים יא, יט) ולמדתם אותם את בניכם והיכא דלא אגמריה אבוה מיחייב איהו למיגמר נפשיה דכתיב ולמדתם,איהי מנלן דלא מיחייבא דכתיב ולימדתם ולמדתם כל שמצווה ללמוד מצווה ללמד וכל שאינו מצווה ללמוד אינו מצווה ללמד,ואיהי מנלן דלא מיחייבה למילף נפשה דכתיב ולימדתם ולמדתם כל שאחרים מצווין ללמדו מצווה ללמד את עצמו וכל שאין אחרים מצווין ללמדו אין מצווה ללמד את עצמו ומנין שאין אחרים מצווין ללמדה דאמר קרא ולמדתם אותם את בניכם ולא בנותיכם,ת"ר הוא ללמוד ובנו ללמוד הוא קודם לבנו ר' יהודה אומר אם בנו זריז וממולח ותלמודו מתקיים בידו בנו קודמו כי הא דרב יעקב בריה דרב אחא בר יעקב שדריה אבוה לקמיה דאביי כי אתא חזייה דלא הוה מיחדדין שמעתיה א"ל אנא עדיפא מינך תוב את דאיזיל אנא,שמע אביי דקא הוה אתי הוה ההוא מזיק בי רבנן דאביי דכי הוו עיילי בתרין אפי' ביממא הוו מיתזקי אמר להו לא ליתיב ליה אינש אושפיזא אפשר דמתרחיש ניסא,על בת בההוא בי רבנן אידמי ליה כתנינא דשבעה רישוותיה כל כריעה דכרע נתר חד רישיה אמר להו למחר אי לא איתרחיש ניסא סכינתין,ת"ר ללמוד תורה ולישא אשה ילמוד תורה ואח"כ ישא אשה ואם א"א לו בלא אשה ישא אשה ואח"כ ילמוד תורה אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל הלכה נושא אשה ואח"כ ילמוד תורה,ר' יוחנן אמר ריחיים בצוארו ויעסוק בתורה ולא פליגי הא לן והא להו:,משתבח ליה רב חסדא לרב הונא בדרב המנונא דאדם גדול הוא א"ל כשיבא לידך הביאהו לידי כי אתא חזייה דלא פריס סודרא א"ל מאי טעמא לא פריסת סודרא א"ל דלא נסיבנא אהדרינהו לאפיה מיניה א"ל חזי דלא חזית להו לאפי עד דנסבת,רב הונא לטעמיה דאמר בן עשרים שנה ולא נשא אשה כל ימיו בעבירה בעבירה סלקא דעתך אלא אימא כל ימיו בהרהור עבירה,אמר רבא וכן תנא דבי ר' ישמעאל עד כ' שנה יושב הקב"ה ומצפה לאדם מתי ישא אשה כיון שהגיע כ' ולא נשא אומר תיפח עצמותיו,אמר רב חסדא האי דעדיפנא מחבראי דנסיבנא בשיתסר ואי הוה נסיבנא בארביסר | 29b. that banywhere that there are only five isela /iavailable, i.e., enough to redeem only one man, and one is obligated to redeem both himself and his son, bhe,the father, btakes precedence over his son. What is the reason?It is that bhis own mitzva is preferableto one that he performs on behalf of others. bWhen they disagreeis in a case bwhere there island worth bfive iselathat is blienedproperty that has been sold, i.e., he sold this land to other people but it can be reclaimed by his prior creditor, band five iselawhich is entirely bunsoldproperty.,And the reasoning behind the dispute is as follows: bRabbi Yehuda maintainsthat ba loan that is written in the Torah,i.e., any ficial obligation that applies by Torah law, is bconsidered as though it is written in a document,and therefore it can be collected from liened property, like any loan recorded in a document. This means that the liened property worth five iselais available for one’s own redemption, but not for that of his son, as the sale of the property occurred before the birth of his firstborn. Consequently, bwith these five iselaupon which there is no lien bhe redeems his son, andthe bpriest goes and repossessesthe land worth bfive iselathat is blienedproperty bfor hisown redemption. In this manner one can fulfill both mitzvot., bAnd the Rabbis maintain: A loan that is written in the Torah is not considered as though it is written in a document,since buyers will not be aware of this obligation, so that they should be aware that the land may be repossessed. bAnd thereforethere is no advantage for this man to redeem his son with the five iselaupon which there is no lien, and bhis own mitzva is preferable,which means he redeems himself with the free land. With the liened property that is left he cannot redeem his son, as the land was sold before the birth of his firstborn., bThe Sages taught:If one has money bto redeem his son and to ascend toJerusalem on bthe pilgrimage Festival, he redeems his son and then ascendsto Jerusalem bon the pilgrimage Festival. Rabbi Yehuda says: He ascendsto Jerusalem bon the pilgrimage Festival and then redeems his son.His reasoning is bthat thistrip to Jerusalem for the pilgrimage Festival is ba mitzvawhose time soon bpasses, and this,the redemption of the firstborn son, is ba mitzvawhose time does bnotsoon bpass,as it can be fulfilled later.,The Gemara asks: bGranted, according tothe opinion of bRabbi Yehuda,it is bas he statedin bhis reasoning,i.e., Rabbi Yehuda provided the rationale for his opinion. bBut what is the reasoning of the Rabbis,who say that he should first redeem his son? The Gemara answers that the reason is bthat the verse states: “All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem”(Exodus 34:20), bandit bthenstates, in the same verse: b“And none shall appear before me empty,”referring to the pilgrimage Festival in Jerusalem. The order of the verse indicates that one should redeem his firstborn son before traveling to Jerusalem on the pilgrimage Festival., bThe Sages taught: From whereis it derived bthat if one had fivefirstborn bsons, from fivedifferent bwomen, he is obligated to redeem them all? The verse states: “All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem”(Exodus 34:20), and the emphasis of “all” includes any of one’s firstborn sons. The Gemara asks: bIsn’tit bobviousthis is the case? After all, bthe Merciful One madethis mitzva bdependent upon the opening of the womb,as it states: “Sanctify to Me all the firstborn, whoever opens the womb” (Exodus 13:2). Since each of these sons is the firstborn of his mother, it is clear that the father is required to redeem each of them.,The Gemara answers that this ruling is necessary blest you saythat bwe should derivea verbal analogy between b“firstborn”stated here and b“firstborn” fromthe verses dealing with binheritance: Just as there,the verse describes a firstborn who receives a double portion of the inheritance as: b“The first fruit of his strength”(Deuteronomy 21:17), i.e., he is the firstborn son to his father, and not the first child born to his mother; bso too here,with regard to the redemption of the firstborn son, it is referring to the bfirst fruit of his strength,which would mean that the father need redeem only his oldest child. Therefore, this ibaraita bteaches usthat this is not the case. Rather, every firstborn son to his mother must be redeemed.,§ The ibaraitateaches that a father is obligated bto teachhis son bTorah.The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive this requirement? bAs it is written: “And you shall teach them [ ivelimadtem /i] to your sons”(Deuteronomy 11:19). bAndin a case bwhere his father did not teach him he is obligated to teach himself, as it is written,i.e., the verse can be read with a different vocalization: bAnd you shall study [ iulmadtem /i]. /b, bFrom where do wederive bthata woman bis not obligatedto teach her son Torah? bAs it is written: “And you shall teach [ ivelimadtem /i],”which can be read as: bAnd you shall study [ iulmadtem /i].This indicates that bwhoever is commanded to studyTorah bis commanded to teach, and whoever is not commanded to study is not commanded to teach.Since a woman is not obligated to learn Torah, she is likewise not obligated to teach it.,The Gemara asks: bAnd from where do wederive bthat she is not obligated to teach herself?The Gemara answers: bAs it is written: “And you shall teach [ ivelimadtem /i],”which can be read as: bAnd you shall study [ iulmadtem /i],which indicates that bwhoever others are commanded to teach is commanded to teach himself, and whoever others are not commanded to teach is not commanded to teach himself. And from whereis it derived bthat others are not commanded to teacha woman? bAs the verse states: “And you shall teach them to your sons”(Deuteronomy 11:19), which emphasizes: bYour sons and not your daughters. /b, bThe Sages taught:If bonewishes bto studyTorah himself band his sonalso wants bto study, he takes precedence over his son. Rabbi Yehuda says: If his son is diligent and sharp, and his study will endure, his son takes precedence over him.This is blike thatanecdote bwhichis told about bRav Ya’akov, son of Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov, whose father sent him to Abayeto study Torah. bWhenthe son bcamehome, his father bsaw that his studies were not sharp,as he was insufficiently bright. Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov bsaid tohis son: bI am preferable to you,and it is better that I go and study. Therefore, byou sitand handle the affairs of the house bso that I can goand study., bAbaye heardthat Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov bwas coming. There was a certain demon in the study hall of Abaye,which was so powerful bthat when twopeople would benter they would be harmed, even during the day.Abaye bsaid tothe people of the town: bDo not giveRav Aḥa bar Ya’akov blodging [ iushpiza /i]so that he will be forced to spend the night in the study hall. Since Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov is a righteous man, bperhaps a miracle will occuron his behalf and he will kill the demon.,Rav Aḥa found no place to spend the night, and bhe entered and spent the night in that study hallof bthe Sages.The demon bappeared to him like a serpentwith bseven heads.Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov began to pray, and with bevery bowthat bhe bowed oneof the demon’s bheads fell off,until it eventually died. The bnext dayRav Aḥa bsaid tothe townspeople: bIf a miracle had not occurred, you would have placed me in danger. /b, bThe Sages taught:If one has to decide whether bto study Torah or to marry a woman,which should he do first? bHe should study Torah and afterward marry a woman. And if it is impossible for himto be bwithout a wife, he should marry a woman and then study Torah. Rav Yehuda saysthat bShmuel says:The ihalakha /iis that one should bmarry a woman and afterward study Torah. /b, bRabbi Yoḥa says:How can one do this? With ba millstonehanging bfrom his neck,i.e., with the responsibility of providing for his family weighing upon him, can bhe engage in Torahstudy? The Gemara comments: bAndthe iamora’im bdo not disagree; this is for us and that is for them.In other words, one statement applies to the residents of Babylonia, whereas the other is referring to those living in Eretz Yisrael.,§ With regard to marriage, the Gemara relates: bRav Ḥisda would praise Rav Hamnuna to Rav Hunaby saying bthat he is a great man.Rav Huna bsaid to him: When he comes to you, send him to me. WhenRav Hamnuna bcamebefore him, Rav Huna bsaw that he did not coverhis head with ba cloth,as Torah scholars did. Rav Huna bsaid to him: What is the reasonthat byou do not coveryour head bwith a cloth?Rav Hamnuna bsaid to him:The reason is bthat I am not married,and it was not customary for unmarried men to cover their heads with a cloth. Rav Huna bturned his face away from himin rebuke, and bhe said to him: Seeto it bthat you do not see my face until you marry. /b,The Gemara notes: bRav Hunaconforms bto hisstandard line of breasoning, as he says:If one is btwenty years old and has notyet bmarried a woman, all of his dayswill be bina state of bsinconcerning sexual matters. The Gemara asks: Can it benter your mindthat he will be bina state of bsinall of his days? bRather, saythat this means the following: bAll of his dayswill be bina state of bthoughts of sin,i.e., sexual thoughts. One who does not marry in his youth will become accustomed to thoughts of sexual matters, and the habit will remain with him the rest of his life., bRava said, and similarly, the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: Untilone reaches the age of btwenty years the Holy One, Blessed be He, sits and waits for a man,saying: bWhen will he marry a woman? Once he reachesthe age of btwenty and has not married, He says: Let his bones swell,i.e., he is cursed and God is no longer concerned about him., bRav Ḥisda said:The fact bthat I am superior to my colleaguesis bbecause I marriedat the age of bsixteen, and if I would have married atthe age of bfourteen, /b |
|
16. Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
17a. עמך עמך ואת בהדייהו ורבי יהודה עמך משום שכינה,ורבנן אמר קרא (במדבר יא, יז) ונשאו אתך במשא העם אתך ואת בהדייהו ורבי יהודה אתך בדומין לך,ורבנן (שמות יח, כב) מוהקל מעליך ונשאו אתך נפקא וילפא סנהדרי גדולה מסנהדרי קטנה,ת"ר (במדבר יא, כו) וישארו שני אנשים במחנה יש אומרים בקלפי נשתיירו,שבשעה שאמר לו הקב"ה למשה אספה לי שבעים איש מזקני ישראל אמר משה כיצד אעשה אברור ששה מכל שבט ושבט נמצאו שנים יתירים אברור חמשה חמשה מכל שבט ושבט נמצאו עשרה חסרים אברור ששה משבט זה וחמשה משבט זה הריני מטיל קנאה בין השבטים,מה עשה בירר ששה ששה והביא שבעים ושנים פיתקין על שבעים כתב זקן ושנים הניח חלק בללן ונתנן בקלפי אמר להם בואו וטלו פיתקיכם כל מי שעלה בידו זקן אמר כבר קידשך שמים מי שעלה בידו חלק אמר המקום לא חפץ בך אני מה אעשה לך,כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר (במדבר ג, מז) ולקחת חמשת חמשת שקלים לגולגולת אמר משה כיצד אעשה להן לישראל אם אומר לו תן לי פדיונך וצא יאמר לי כבר פדאני בן לוי,מה עשה הביא עשרים ושנים אלפים פיתקין וכתב עליהן בן לוי ועל שלשה ושבעים ומאתים כתב עליהן חמשה שקלים בללן ונתנן בקלפי אמר להן טלו פיתקיכם מי שעלה בידו בן לוי אמר לו כבר פדאך בן לוי מי שעלה בידו חמשת שקלים אמר לו תן פדיונך וצא,רבי שמעון אומר במחנה נשתיירו בשעה שאמר לו הקב"ה למשה אספה לי שבעים איש אמרו אלדד ומידד אין אנו ראויין לאותה גדולה אמר הקב"ה הואיל ומיעטתם עצמכם הריני מוסיף גדולה על גדולתכם ומה גדולה הוסיף להם שהנביאים כולן נתנבאו ופסקו והם נתנבאו ולא פסקו,ומה נבואה נתנבאו אמרו משה מת יהושע מכניס את ישראל לארץ אבא חנין אומר משום רבי אליעזר על עסקי שליו הן מתנבאים עלי שליו עלי שליו,רב נחמן אמר על עסקי גוג ומגוג היו מתנבאין שנאמר (יחזקאל לח, ג) כה אמר ה' אלהים האתה הוא אשר דברתי בימים קדמונים ביד עבדי נביאי ישראל הנבאים בימים ההם שנים להביא אותך עליהם וגו' אל תיקרי שנים אלא שנים ואיזו הן שנים נביאים שנתנבאו בפרק אחד נבואה אחת הוי אומר אלדד ומידד,אמר מר כל הנביאים כולן נתנבאו ופסקו והן נתנבאו ולא פסקו מנא לן דפסקו אילימא מדכתיב (במדבר יא, כה) ויתנבאו ולא יספו אלא מעתה (דברים ה, יח) קול גדול ולא יסף ה"נ דלא אוסיף הוא אלא דלא פסק הוא,אלא הכא כתיב ויתנבאו התם כתיב (במדבר יא, כז) מתנבאים עדיין מתנבאים והולכים,בשלמא למ"ד משה מת היינו דכתיב (במדבר יא, כח) אדוני משה כלאם אלא למ"ד הנך תרתי מאי אדני משה כלאם דלאו אורח ארעא דהוה ליה כתלמיד המורה הלכה לפני רבו,בשלמא למ"ד הנך תרתי היינו דכתיב מי יתן אלא למ"ד משה מת מינח הוה ניחא ליה לא סיימוה קמיה,מאי כלאם א"ל הטל עליהן צרכי ציבור והן כלין מאיליהן:,מניין להביא עוד שלשה:,סוף סוף לרעה ע"פ שנים לא משכחת לה אי אחד עשר מזכין ושנים עשר מחייבין אכתי חד הוא אי עשרה מזכין ושלשה עשר מחייבין תלתא הוו א"ר אבהו אי אתה מוצא אלא במוסיפין ודברי הכל ובסנהדרי גדולה ואליבא דרבי יהודה דאמר שבעים,וא"ר אבהו במוסיפין עושין ב"ד שקול לכתחילה פשיטא מהו דתימא האי דקאמר איני יודע כמאן דאיתיה דמי ואי אמר מילתא שמעינן ליה קמ"ל דהאי דקאמר איני יודע כמאן דליתיה דמי ואי אמר טעמא לא שמעינן ליה,אמר רב כהנא סנהדרי שראו כולן לחובה פוטרין אותו מ"ט כיון דגמירי הלנת דין למעבד ליה זכותא והני תו לא חזו ליה,א"ר יוחנן אין מושיבין בסנהדרי אלא בעלי קומה ובעלי חכמה ובעלי מראה ובעלי זקנה ובעלי כשפים ויודעים בע' לשון שלא תהא סנהדרי שומעת מפי המתורגמן,אמר רב יהודה אמר רב אין מושיבין בסנהדרין אלא מי שיודע לטהר את השרץ מה"ת אמר רב אני אדון ואטהרנו | 17a. bwith you”(Numbers 11:16), i.e., they will stand b“with you,” and youare to be counted bwith them,leading to a total number of seventy-one. bAnd Rabbi Yehudaholds that the term b“with you”is mentioned bdue to the Divine Presencethat rested on Moses. According to Rabbi Yehuda, Moses was instructed to remain with the seventy Elders in order for the Divine Presence to rest upon them as well. He was not formally part of their court and therefore the number of Sages on the Great Sanhedrin is seventy.,The Gemara asks: bAndhow would bthe Rabbisrespond to this line of reasoning? The Gemara answers: bThe verse states: “And they shall bear the burden of the people with you”(Numbers 11:17), which indicates: b“With you,” and youare to be counted bwith them. Andhow would bRabbi Yehudarespond to that? He would explain that the term b“with you”means bsimilar to you,meaning, that the Elders appointed to the court had to be of fit lineage and free of blemish, like Moses., bAndfrom where do bthe Rabbisderive that ihalakha /i? They bderive it fromwhat was stated with regard to the appointment of the ministers of thousands and the ministers of hundreds: b“And they shall make it easier for you, and bear the burden with you”(Exodus 18:22), understanding the term “with you” to mean: Similar to you. bAndthe ihalakhaof the judges of bthe Great Sanhedrinof seventy bis derived fromthe ihalakhaof the judges of bthe lesser Sanhedrin,i.e., those ministers, that Moses appointed.,§ Apropos the appointment of the Elders by Moses, the Gemara discusses additional aspects of that event. There were seventy-two candidates for Elder but only seventy were needed. They were chosen by lots with their names put into a box. bThe Sages taught:The verse states: b“And there remained two men in the camp;the name of one was Eldad and the name of the other Medad, and the spirit rested upon them, and they were among those who were written but who did not go out to the tent, and they prophesied in the camp” (Numbers 11:26). Where did they remain? bSome saythis means bthey,i.e., their names, bremainedexcluded from those selected from the lots bin the box. /b,The ibaraitaexplains: bAt the time that the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses: “Gather for Me seventy men of the Elders of Israel”(Numbers 11:16), bMoses said: How shall I doit? If bI select six from each and every tribe, there will bea total of seventy-two, which will be btwo extra.But if bI select five from each and every tribe, there will bea total of sixty, blacking ten.And if bI select six from this tribe and five from that tribe, I will bring about envy between the tribes,as those with fewer representatives will resent the others., bWhat did he do? He selected sixfrom every tribe band he brought seventy-two slips [ ipitakin /i]. On seventyof them bhe wrote: Elder, and he left twoof them bblank. He mixed them and placed them in the box. Hethen bsaid tothe seventy-two chosen candidates: bCome and draw your slips. Everyone whose hand drew upa slip that said: bElder, he saidto him: bHeaven has already sanctified you.And beveryone whose hand drew upa bblankslip, bhe saidto him: bThe Omnipresent does not desire you; what can I do for you? /b,The Gemara comments: bYoucan bsaysomething bsimilar to thisto explain the verse about the redemption of the firstborn by the Levites: “Take the Levites in place of all of the firstborn of the children of Israel…and as for the redemption of the 273 of the firstborn of the children of Israel who are in excess over the number of the Levites… byou shall take five shekels per head”(Numbers 3:45–47). It can be explained that bMoses said: How shall I dothis bfor the Jews? If I say toone of the firstborns: bGive memoney for byour redemption andyou may bleave,as you are among the 273 extra firstborns, bhe will say to me: A Levite already redeemed me;what is the reason you think that I am among those who were not redeemed?, bWhat did he do? He brought 22,000 slips ( /bsee Numbers 3:39), band he wrote on them: Levite, and on 273additional ones bhe wrote: Five shekels. He mixed them up and placed them in a box. He said to them: Draw your slips. Everyone whose hand drew upa slip that said: bLevite, he said to him: A Levite already redeemed you. Everyone whose hand drew upa slip that said: bFive shekels, he said to him: Pay your redemptionmoney and you may bleave. /b, bRabbi Shimon says:Eldad and Medad bremained in the camp,as they did not want to come to the lottery for the Elders. bAt the time that the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses: Gather for me seventy Elders, Eldad and Medad said: We are not fitting for thatlevel of bgreatness;we are not worthy of being appointed among the Elders. bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Since you have made yourselves humble, I will add greatness to your greatness. And what isthe bgreatnessthat bhe added to them?It was bthat all of the prophets,meaning the other Elders, who were given prophecy, bprophesiedfor a time bandthen bstoppedprophesying, bbut they prophesied and did not stop. /b,Apropos Eldad and Medad being prophets, the Gemara asks: bAnd what prophecy did they prophesy? They said: Moses will die,and bJoshua will bring the Jewish people into EretzYisrael. bAbba Ḥanin says in the name of Rabbi Eliezer: They prophesied about the matter of the quailthat came afterward (Numbers 11:31–33), saying: bArise quail, arise quail,and then the quail came., bRav Naḥman says: They were prophesying about the matter of Gog and Magog, as it is statedwith regard to Gog and Magog: b“So says the Lord God: Are you the one of whom I spoke in ancient days, through my servants, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those days for many years [ ishanim /i] that I would bring you against them?”(Ezekiel 38:17). bDo not readit as: b“Years [ ishanim /i]”; rather,read it as: bTwo [ ishenayim /i]. And who are the two prophets who prophesied the same prophecy at the same time? You must say: Eldad and Medad. /b, bThe Master says:The ibaraitasaid: bAll of the prophets prophesied andthen bstopped, butEldad and Medad bprophesied and did not stop.The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive bthatthe other prophets bstoppedprophesying? bIf we sayit is bfrom that which is writtenabout them: b“And they prophesied but they did so no more [ ivelo yasafu /i]”(Numbers 11:25), that is difficult: bBut if that is so,then concerning that which is stated in relation to the giving of the Torah: “These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly…with ba great voice, and it went on no more [ ivelo yasaf /i]”(Deuteronomy 5:19), bso tooshall it be understood bthatthe great voice bdid not continue? Rather,the intention there is bthat it did not stop,interpreting the word iyasafuas related to isof /i, meaning: End. Consequently, with regard to the seventy Elders as well, the word can be interpreted to mean that they did not stop prophesying., bRather,the proof is as follows: bIt is written herewith regard to the seventy Elders: b“They prophesied”(Numbers 11:25), and bit is written there:“Eldad and Medad bare prophesyingin the camp” (Numbers 11:27), from which it can be derived that bthey were continuously prophesying. /b,With regard to the content of Eldad and Medad’s prophecy, the Gemara asks: bGranted, according to the one who saystheir prophecy was that bMoses will die, this isthe reason for that bwhich is writtenthere: “And Joshua, son of Nun, the servant of Moses from his youth, answered and said: bMy master Moses, imprison them”(Numbers 11:28), as their prophecy appeared to be a rebellion against Moses. bBut according to the one who says thoseother btwoopinions with regard to the content of the prophecy, according to which their prophecy had no connection to Moses, bwhatis the reason that Joshua said: b“My master Moses, imprison them”?The Gemara answers: He said this bbecauseit is bnot proper conductfor them to prophesy publicly in close proximity to Moses, basby doing so bthey are like a student who teaches a ihalakhain his teacher’s presence,which is inappropriate.,The Gemara asks: bGranted, according to the one who says thoseother btwoopinions, bthis isthe reason for that bwhich is written:“And Moses said to him: Are you jealous for my sake? bWouldthat all of the Lord’s people were prophets” (Numbers 11:29). bBut according to the one who saysthat Eldad and Medad prophesied that bMoses will dieand Joshua will bring Israel into the land, bwould it have been satisfactory to Mosesthat all of the people of God would utter similar prophecies? The Gemara answers: bThey did not conclude it before him.Moses was not aware of what they had said, but only that they were prophesying.,The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of: b“Imprison them [ ikela’em /i]”?The Gemara answers: Joshua bsaid to him: Placeresponsibility for the bneeds of the public upon them,so that they will be occupied like the other Elders of Israel band they will cease [ ikalin /i]prophesying, bon their own.Due to the burden of public responsibility they would not be able to be prophets.,§ The mishna derives the ihalakhathat there are twenty-three judges on a lesser Sanhedrin from the verses: “And the congregation shall judge,” and: “And the congregation shall save” (Numbers 35:24–25). The mishna understands that the term “congregation” is referring to ten judges, so that the two congregations, one in each verse, total twenty judges. The mishna then asks: bFrom whereis it derived bto bring three morejudges to the court? The mishna answers: The implication of the verse: “You shall not follow a multitude to convict” (Exodus 23:2), is that your inclination after a majority to exonerate is not like your inclination after a majority to convict, and a conviction must be by a majority of two.,The Gemara objects: bUltimately, you do not findan occurrence of the inclination bfor evil according toa majority of btwojudges. bIf elevenjudges vote to bacquitthe defendant band twelvevote to bconvict, this is stillonly a majority of bone,and bif tenvote to bacquit and thirteenvote to bconvict, they area majority of bthree.With a court of twenty-three judges, there is no possible way to convict with a majority of two. bRabbi Abbahu says: You do not findsuch a scenario bexceptin a case bwhere they addtwo additional judges because one of the judges abstained from the deliberation, the other judges are split in their decisions, and the two added judges both vote to convict. bAndthis is a possibility baccording toall itanna’im /i, band ina case tried by bthe Great Sanhedrin according tothe opinion bof Rabbi Yehuda, who saysthere are bseventyjudges on the Great Sanhedrin. With an even number, it is possible to have a majority of two., bAnd Rabbi Abbahu says: When they addadditional judges, they bcreate a courtconsisting of ban evennumber of judges iab initio /i.The Gemara asks: Isn’t that bobvious?What is the novelty in Rabbi Abbahu’s statement? The Gemara answers: bLest you say: Thisjudge bwho says: I do not know, isviewed bas one who isstill bthere, and if he says somethingafterward, bwe listen to himand include him in the count, so there are actually an odd number of judges on the court; therefore, Rabbi Abbahu bteaches us that thisjudge bwho says: I do not know, isviewed bas one who is notstill bthere, and if he says a reasonto rule in a certain manner afterward, bwe do not listen to him.Consequently, the court consists of an even number of judges.,§ bRav Kahana says:In ba Sanhedrin where allthe judges bsawfit bto convictthe defendant in a case of capital law, they bacquit him.The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasoningfor this ihalakha /i? It is bsinceit bis learnedas a tradition that bsuspension of the trialovernight is necessary in order bto createa possibility of bacquittal.The ihalakhais that they may not issue the guilty verdict on the same day the evidence was heard, as perhaps over the course of the night one of the judges will think of a reason to acquit the defendant. bAndas bthosejudges all saw fit to convict him they bwill not seeany bfurtherpossibility to acquit bhim,because there will not be anyone arguing for such a verdict. Consequently, he cannot be convicted.,§ bRabbi Yoḥa says:They bplace on theGreat bSanhedrin onlymen bofhigh bstature, and of wisdom, and ofpleasant bappearance, and ofsuitable bageso that they will be respected. bAndthey must also be bmasters of sorcery,i.e., they know the nature of sorcery, so that they can judge sorcerers, bandthey must bknowall bseventy languagesin order bthat the Sanhedrin will notneed to bheartestimony bfrom the mouth of a translatorin a case where a witness speaks a different language., bRav Yehuda saysthat bRav says:They bplace on the Sanhedrin only one who knowshow bto rendera carcass of ba creeping animal pure by Torah law.The judges on the Sanhedrin must be so skilled at logical reasoning that they could even produce a convincing argument that creeping animals, which the Torah states explicitly are ritually impure, are actually pure. bRav said: I will discussthe ihalakhaof the creeping animal band render it pure,i.e., I am able to demonstrate how it is possible to construct such a proof: |
|
17. Babylonian Talmud, Taanit, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
17a. אלא בראש השנה וביובלות ובשעת מלחמה:,על הראשונה הוא אומר מי שענה את אברהם כו': תנא יש מחליפין צעקה לאליהו ותפלה לשמואל בשלמא גבי שמואל כתיב ביה תפלה וכתיב ביה צעקה,אלא גבי אליהו תפלה כתיב צעקה לא כתיב (מלכים א יח, לז) ענני ה' ענני לשון צעקה היא:,על הששית הוא אומר מי שענה את יונה כו' על השביעית הוא אומר מי שענה את דוד כו': מכדי יונה בתר דוד ושלמה הוה מאי טעמא מקדים ליה ברישא משום דבעי למיחתם מרחם על הארץ תנא משום סומכוס אמרו ברוך משפיל הרמים:,שלש תעניות הראשונות אנשי משמר מתענין ולא משלימין כו': תנו רבנן מפני מה אמרו אנשי משמר מותרין לשתות יין בלילות אבל לא בימים שמא תכבד העבודה על אנשי בית אב ויבואו ויסייעו להם,מפני מה אמרו אנשי בית אב לא ביום ולא בלילה מפני שהן עסוקין תמיד בעבודה,מכאן אמרו כל כהן שמכיר משמרתו ומשמרת בית אב שלו ויודע שבתי אבותיו קבועין שם אסור לשתות יין כל אותו היום במכיר משמרתו ואין מכיר משמרת בית אב שלו ויודע שבתי אבותיו קבועין שם אסור לשתות יין כל אותה שבת,אינו מכיר משמרתו ומשמרת בית אב שלו ויודע שבתי אבותיו קבועין שם אסור לשתות יין כל השנה,רבי אומר אומר אני אסור לשתות יין לעולם אבל מה אעשה שתקנתו קלקלתו אמר אביי כמאן שתו האידנא כהני חמרא כרבי:,אנשי משמר ואנשי מעמד אסורים לספר ולכבס ובחמישי מותרין מפני כבוד השבת: מאי טעמא אמר רבה בר בר חנה אמר ר' יוחנן כדי שלא יכנסו למשמרתם כשהן מנוולין,ת"ר מלך מסתפר בכל יום כהן גדול מערב שבת לערב שבת כהן הדיוט אחת לשלשים יום מלך מסתפר בכל יום מ"ט אמר רבי אבא בר זבדא אמר קרא (ישעיהו לג, יז) מלך ביפיו תחזינה עיניך כהן גדול מע"ש לערב שבת מ"ט אמר רב שמואל בר יצחק הואיל ומשמרות מתחדשות,כהן הדיוט אחת לשלשים יום מנלן אתיא פרע פרע מנזיר כתיב הכא (יחזקאל מד, כ) וראשם לא יגלחו ופרע לא ישלחו וכתיב התם (במדבר ו, ה) קדוש יהיה גדל פרע שער ראשו מה להלן שלשים אף כאן שלשים,ונזיר גופיה מנלן אמר רב מתנה סתם נזירות שלשים יום מנלן אמר קרא יהיה בגימטריא תלתין הוי א"ל רב פפא לאביי ודילמא ה"ק רחמנא לא לירבו כלל אמר ליה אי הוה כתב לא ישלחו פרע כדקאמרת השתא דכתיב ופרע לא ישלחו פרע ליהוי שלוחי הוא דלא לישלחו,אי הכי אפילו האידנא נמי דומיא דשתויי יין מה שתויי יין בזמן ביאה הוא דאסור שלא בזמן ביאה שרי אף הכא נמי,והתניא רבי אומר אומר אני כהנים אסורין לשתות יין לעולם אבל מה אעשה שתקנתו קלקלתו ואמר אביי כמאן שתו האידנא כהני חמרא | 17a. bonly on Rosh HaShana, and onYom Kippur of bJubilee Years, and in a time of war. /b,§ The mishna teaches: bFor the firstblessing bhe recites: He Who answered Abraham.It was btaughtin a ibaraita /i: bSome reversethe order of the conclusion of two blessings, by reciting: Who hears bcries,in the fifth blessing, which deals bwith Elijah,and the conclusion: Who hears bprayer,in the blessing bof Samuel.The Gemara asks: bGranted, with regard to Samuelboth options are appropriate, as bit is written concerning him: Prayer, and it islikewise bwritten concerning him: Crying.One verse states: “And Samuel said: Gather all of Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray for you to the Lord” (I Samuel 7:5), while another verse states: “And Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel” (I Samuel 7:9)., bHowever, with regard to Elijah,although bprayer is written,as it says: “Elijah the prophet came near and said: Lord, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel” (I Kings 18:36), which is referring to a prayer, bcrying is not written.How, then, can one conclude a blessing that deals with Elijah by mentioning crying? The Gemara answers that Elijah’s statement: b“Answer me, Lord, answer me”(I Kings 18:37), bis an expressionof bcrying,even if the term crying does not itself actually appear.,§ The mishna further teaches: bFor the sixth he recites: He Who answered Jonah; for the seventh he recites: He Who answered David.The Gemara asks: bSince Jonah was after David and Solomon, what is the reasonthat the itanna bmentionsJonah bfirst?The Gemara answers: The reason is bdue tothe fact bthat he wants to concludethe series with: Blessed are You, Lord, bWho has mercy on the Land.Therefore, the last blessing mentions David and Solomon, who were kings of Eretz Yisrael and prayed on its behalf. It was btaught in the name of Sumakhosthat bthey saidhe concludes the final blessing with: bBlessedare You, Lord, bWho humbles the exalted. /b,§ The mishna teaches that on bthe first three fasts, the members of the priestly watch fast but do not completetheir fasts until nightfall. The mishna then proceeds to cite other ihalakhotthat deal with the members of the priestly watch and the patrilineal family. bThe Sages taught: For whatreason bdid they saythat bthe members of the priestly watch are permitted to drink wine at nights but not during the days?They said this bleston a certain day the Temple bservice becomes burdensome for the members of the patrilineal family, andthe members of the priestly watch are called to bcome and assist them.Therefore, it is prohibited for them to drink wine during the day, when their help might be needed, so that they do not enter the Temple after drinking wine.,The ibaraitacontinues to explain the reason for the mishna’s ruling. bFor whatreason bdid they saythat bthe members of the patrilineal familymay not drink wine, bneither by day nor by night? Because they are constantly engaged inthe Temple bservice. /b, bFrom herethe Sages bstated:Even nowadays, after the destruction of the Temple, with regard to bany priest who knows his priestly watch,in which his family served, band the watch of his patrilineal family, and he knows that the family of his forefathers was establishedas fit for the Temple service bthere,it is bprohibitedfor him bto drink wine that entire day,in the event that the Temple is rebuilt on that day and he will be called to return to the service. In the case of a priest bwho knows his priestly watch,i.e., the week of the year in which his family served, band does not know the watch of his patrilineal family,the day of the week that his family served, bbut he knows that the family of his forefathers was established there,it is bprohibitedfor him bto drink wine that entire week. /b,Finally, if he does not know bhis priestly watch or the watch of his patrilineal family, but he knows that the family of his forefathers was established there,he is bprohibited to drink wine that entire year.When the Temple will be rebuilt, his priestly watch might be called upon to serve, and he is unaware of the appointed time for his Temple service., bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bsays: I saythat in accordance with this reasoning it is bprohibitedfor any priest bto drink wine at any time,even if he knows his priestly watch, as the order of the watches might change when the Temple is rebuilt, or perhaps all the watches will participate in the rededication of Temple. bHowever, what can I do, as his misfortune is his advantage?The unfortunate fact that so many years have passed since the destruction of the Temple means that this decree prohibiting the priests from drinking cannot be sustained. bAbaye said: In accordance with whoseopinion bdo priests drink wine nowadays?It is bin accordance withthe opinion of bRabbiYehuda HaNasi.,§ The mishna teaches: It is bprohibitedfor both bthe members of the priestly watch and the members of the non-priestly watch to cut their hair or laundertheir garments throughout the week, bbut on Thursday they are permittedto cut their hair and launder their clothes bin deference to Shabbat.The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasonfor these prohibitions? bRabba bar bar Ḥana saidthat bRabbi Yoḥa said:These prohibitions were enacted bin order toensure that the priests will cut their hair and launder their clothes during the week before their service, bso that they will not enter their priestly watch when they are unkempt. /b, bThe Sages taught: A king cuts his hair every day, a High Priestcuts his hair bevery Friday,and ba common priest once every thirty days.The Gemara clarifies: bA king cuts his hair every day. What is the reasonfor this? bRabbi Abba bar Zavda saidthat bthe verse states: “Your eyes shall see the king in his beauty”(Isaiah 33:17), which indicates that a king must always look his best. bA High Priest cuts his hair every Friday.The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reasonfor this? bRav Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: Since the watches are renewedand changed every Friday, it is fitting for every watch to see the High Priest with his hair perfectly groomed.,§ bA common priestcuts his hair bonce every thirty days.The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive this number? It is bderivedby a verbal analogy from the word ipera /iwith regard to priests and ipera /iin connection bwith a nazirite. It is written here,concerning priests: b“Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks [ ipera /i] to grow long”(Ezekiel 44:20), band it is written there,with regard to a nazirite: b“He shall be sacred, he shall let the locks [ ipera /i] of the hair of his head grow long”(Numbers 6:5). bJust as there,a nazirite who does not specify any other time period cuts his hair after bthirtydays, bso too here,a priest cuts his hair every bthirtydays.,The Gemara asks: bAnd a nazirite himself, from where do wederive that he may not cut his hair for thirty days? bRav Mattana said:It is a principle that ban unspecified naziriteshiplasts bthirty days.The Gemara inquires: bFrom where do wederive this principle? The Gemara answers that bthe verse states: “He shall be [ iyihye /i]sacred” (Numbers 6:5), and bthe numerical value [ igimatriya /i] of iyihyeis thirty. Rav Pappa said to Abaye: But perhaps this is what the Merciful One is sayingin the Torah: They should bnot growtheir hair bat all,as they must cut it every day. Abaye bsaid to him: If it were written: They shall not grow long their locks,I might have explained bas youoriginally bsaid. Now that it is written: “Nor suffer their locks to grow long,”this indicates that they may have locks, but they may not let them grow long.,The Gemara asks: bIfit is bsothat cutting one’s hair is a necessary preparation for the Temple service by Torah law, then beven nowadayspriests should cut their hair every thirty days bas well,in case the Temple is rebuilt and they must resume their service. The Gemara answers: This issue is bsimilarto the prohibition bconcerning those who have drunk wine. Just aswith regard to bthose who have drunk wine,it is bwhenone bentersthe Temple bthat it is prohibited,whereas bwhenone bdoes not enterthe Temple it is bpermittedto drink wine, bherethe same balsoapplies.,The Gemara questions this conclusion: bBut isn’t it taughtin the aforementioned ibaraitathat bRabbiYehuda HaNasi bsays: I saythat it is bprohibitedfor all bpriests to drink wine at any time. However, what can I do, as his misfortune is his advantage? And Abaye said: In accordance with whoseopinion do bpriests drink wine nowadays? /b |
|
18. Babylonian Talmud, Yevamot, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
63b. מן החטא מקרי ליה רב יהודה לרב יצחק בריה (קהלת ז, כו) ומוצא אני מר ממות את האשה א"ל כגון מאן כגון אמך,והא מתני ליה רב יהודה לרב יצחק בריה אין אדם מוצא קורת רוח אלא מאשתו ראשונה שנאמר (משלי ה, יח) יהי מקורך ברוך ושמח מאשת נעוריך וא"ל כגון מאן כגון אמך מתקיף תקיפא ועבורי מיעברא במלה,היכי דמי אשה רעה אמר אביי מקשטא ליה תכא ומקשטא ליה פומא רבא אמר מקשטא ליה תכא ומהדרא ליה גבא,אמר רבי חמא בר חנינא כיון שנשא אדם אשה עונותיו מתפקקין שנאמר (משלי יח, כב) מצא אשה מצא טוב ויפק רצון מה' במערבא כי נסיב אינש איתתא אמרי ליה הכי מצא או מוצא מצא דכתיב מצא אשה מצא טוב מוצא דכתיב ומוצא אני מר ממות את האשה,אמר רבא אשה רעה מצוה לגרשה דכתיב (משלי כב, י) גרש לץ ויצא מדון וישבות דין וקלון ואמר רבא אשה רעה וכתובתה מרובה צרתה בצדה דאמרי אינשי בחברתה ולא בסילתא ואמר רבא קשה אשה רעה כיום סגריר שנאמר (משלי כז, טו) דלף טורד ביום סגריר ואשת מדינים נשתוה,ואמר רבא בא וראה כמה טובה אשה טובה וכמה רעה אשה רעה כמה טובה אשה טובה דכתיב מצא אשה מצא טוב אי בגוה משתעי קרא כמה טובה אשה טובה שהכתוב משבחה אי בתורה משתעי קרא כמה טובה אשה טובה שהתורה נמשלה בה כמה רעה אשה רעה דכתיב ומוצא אני מר ממות את האשה אי בגוה משתעי קרא כמה רעה אשה רעה שהכתוב מגנה אי בגיהנם משתעי קרא כמה רעה אשה רעה שגיהנם נמשלה בה,(ירמיהו יא, יא) הנני מביא רעה אשר לא יוכלו לצאת ממנה אמר רב נחמן אמר רבה בר אבוה זו אשה רעה וכתובתה מרובה (איכה א, יד) נתנני ה' בידי לא אוכל קום אמר רב חסדא אמר מר עוקבא בר חייא זו אשה רעה וכתובתה מרובה במערבא אמרו זה שמזונותיו תלוין בכספו,(דברים כח, לב) בניך ובנותיך נתונים לעם אחר אמר רב חנן בר רבא אמר רב זו אשת האב (דברים לב, כא) בגוי נבל אכעיסם אמר רב חנן בר רבא אמר רב זו אשה רעה וכתובתה מרובה רבי אליעזר אומר אלו הצדוקים וכן הוא אומר (תהלים יד, א) אמר נבל בלבו אין אלהים וגו',במתניתא תנא אלו אנשי ברבריא ואנשי מרטנאי שמהלכין ערומים בשוק שאין לך משוקץ ומתועב לפני המקום יותר ממי שמהלך בשוק ערום רבי יוחנן אמר אלו חברים אמרו ליה לר' יוחנן אתו חברי לבבל שגא נפל אמרו ליה מקבלי שוחדא תריץ יתיב,גזרו על ג' מפני ג' גזרו על הבשר מפני המתנות גזרו על המרחצאות מפני הטבילה,קא מחטטי שכבי מפני ששמחים ביום אידם שנאמר (שמואל א יב, טו) והיתה יד ה' בכם ובאבותיכם אמר רבה בר שמואל זו חטוטי שכבי דאמר מר בעון חיים מתים מתחטטין,א"ל רבא לרבה בר מארי כתיב (ירמיהו ח, ב) לא יאספו ולא יקברו לדומן על פני האדמה יהיו וכתיב (ירמיהו ח, ג) ונבחר מות מחיים אמר ליה נבחר מות לרשעים שלא יחיו בעולם הזה ויחטאו ויפלו בגיהנם,כתוב בספר בן סירא אשה טובה מתנה טובה לבעלה וכתיב טובה בחיק ירא אלהים תנתן אשה רעה צרעת לבעלה מאי תקנתיה יגרשנה ויתרפא מצרעתו אשה יפה אשרי בעלה מספר ימיו כפלים,העלם עיניך מאשת חן פן תלכד במצודתה אל תט אצל בעלה למסוך עמו יין ושכר כי בתואר אשה יפה רבים הושחתו ועצומים כל הרוגיה רבים היו פצעי רוכל המרגילים לדבר ערוה כניצוץ מבעיר גחלת ככלוב מלא עוף כן בתיהם מלאים מרמה,אל תצר צרת מחר כי לא תדע מה ילד יום שמא מחר בא ואיננו נמצא מצטער על העולם שאין שלו מנע רבים מתוך ביתך ולא הכל תביא ביתך רבים יהיו דורשי שלומך גלה סוד לאחד מאלף,אמר רבי אסי אין בן דוד בא עד שיכלו כל הנשמות שבגוף שנאמר (ישעיהו נז, טז) כי רוח מלפני יעטוף ונשמות אני עשיתי תניא רבי אליעזר אומר כל מי שאין עוסק בפריה ורביה כאילו שופך דמים שנאמר (בראשית ט, ו) שופך דם האדם באדם דמו ישפך וכתיב בתריה ואתם פרו ורבו,רבי יעקב אומר כאילו ממעט הדמות שנאמר (בראשית ט, ו) כי בצלם אלהים עשה את האדם וכתיב בתריה ואתם פרו וגו' בן עזאי אומר כאילו שופך דמים וממעט הדמות שנאמר ואתם פרו ורבו,אמרו לו לבן עזאי יש נאה דורש ונאה מקיים נאה מקיים ואין נאה דורש ואתה נאה דורש ואין נאה מקיים אמר להן בן עזאי ומה אעשה שנפשי חשקה בתורה אפשר לעולם שיתקיים על ידי אחרים,תניא אידך רבי אליעזר אומר כל מי שאין עוסק בפריה ורביה כאילו שופך דמים שנאמר שופך דם האדם וסמיך ליה ואתם פרו וגו' רבי אלעזר בן עזריה אומר כאילו ממעט הדמות בן עזאי אומר וכו' אמרו לו לבן עזאי יש נאה דורש וכו',ת"ר (במדבר י, לו) ובנחה יאמר שובה ה' רבבות אלפי ישראל | 63b. bfrom sin.We should therefore show our gratitude to them. The Gemara cites a related incident: bRav Yehudawas bteachingTorah bto Rav Yitzḥak, his son,and they encountered the verse: b“And I find more bitter than death the woman”(Ecclesiastes 7:26). His son bsaid to him: For example, whom?His father replied: bFor example, your mother. /b,The Gemara asks: bDidn’t Rav Yehuda teach Rav Yitzḥak, his son,the following ibaraita /i: bA man finds peace of mind only with his first wife, as it is stated: “Let your fountain be blessed, and have joy from the wife of your youth”(Proverbs 5:18), bandhis son bsaid to him: For example, whom,and his father responded in this case as well: bFor example, your mother.This indicates that Rav Yehuda did find peace of mind with his wife. The Gemara answers: She was aggressive and bforceful, butshe was beasily appeased. /b,The Gemara asks: bWhat are the circumstanceswhen a woman is considered ba bad wife? Abaye said: She arranges a table for him and arrangesher bmouth for himat the same time. In other words, although she prepares food for him, she verbally abuses him while he eats. bRava said: She arranges a table for him andthen bturnsher bback to him,displaying her lack of interest in his company., bRabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina said: Once a man marries a woman his iniquities crumble [ imitpakekin /i], as it is stated: “Whoever finds a wife finds good, and obtains [ iveyafek /i] favor of the Lord”(Proverbs 18:22). bIn the West,i.e., Eretz Yisrael, bwhen a man married a woman they would say to him as follows: iMatzaor imotze /i?In other words, they would ask the groom if the appropriate passage for his wife is that verse, which begins with the word imatza /i, as it is written: Whoever finds [ imatza /i] a wife finds good,or whether the more appropriate verse is the one beginning with the word imotze /i, as it is written: “And I find [ imotze /i] more bitter than death the woman”(Ecclesiastes 7:26)., bRava said: It is a mitzva to divorce a bad wife, as it is written: “Cast out the scorner and contention will depart; strife and shame will cease”(Proverbs 22:10). bAnd Rava said: A bad wife whose marriage contractsettlement bistoo blargefor her husband to pay in the event of a divorce, bher rival wife is at her side.In other words, the only way for him to improve matters is to take another wife. bAs people sayin the well-known adage: The way to trouble a woman is bwith her peer and not with a thorn. And Rava said: A bad wife is as troublesome as a day of heavy rain, as it is stated: “A continual dropping on a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike”(Proverbs 27:15)., bAnd Rava said: Come and see how good a good wife is and how bad a bad wife is. How good is a good wife? As it is written: Whoever finds a wife finds good. If the verse speaks of her,a wife, this demonstrates bhow good a good wife is, as the Bible praises her. If the verse speaksmetaphorically bof the Torah,it nevertheless indicates bhow good a good wife is, as the Torah is compared to her.Conversely, bhow bad is a bad wife? As it is written: “And I find more bitter than death the woman.” If the verse speaks of her,this demonstrates bhow bad a bad wife is, as the Bible condemns her. If the verse speaksmetaphorically bof Gehenna,it still demonstrates bhow bad a bad wife is, as Gehenna is compared to her. /b,The Gemara cites further statements on the same issue. The verse states: b“Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape”(Jeremiah 11:11). bRav Naḥman saidthat bRabba bar Avuh said: This is a bad wife whose marriage contract is large.Similarly, with regard to the verse: b“The Lord has given me into the hands of those against whom I cannot stand”(Lamentations 1:14), bRav Ḥisda saidthat bMar Ukva bar Ḥiyya said: This is a bad wife whose marriage contract is large. In the West,Eretz Yisrael, bthey said thisverse is referring to one bwhose food is dependent on his money.He is forced to purchase his food with cash, as he does not possess land of his own.,With regard to the verse: b“Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people”(Deuteronomy 28:32), bRav Ḥa bar Rava saidthat bRav said: This isa reference to the children’s bfather’s wife,their stepmother. With regard to the verse: b“I will provoke them with a vile nation”(Deuteronomy 32:21), bRav Ḥa bar Rava saidthat bRav said: This is a bad wife whose marriage contract is large. Rabbi Eliezer saysthat bthese are apostates, and so toothe verse bstates: “The vile man has said in his heart: There is no God,they have dealt corruptly” (Psalms 14:1), which proves that an apostate is called vile., bIt was taught in a ibaraita /iwith regard to the verse: “I will provoke them with a vile nation,” that bthese are the inhabitants of Barbarya and the inhabitants of Martenai, who walk naked in the marketplace, as none is more despised and abominable before the Omnipresent than one who walks naked in the marketplace. Rabbi Yoḥa said: These arethe iḤabbarim /i,a sect of Persian priests. The Gemara relates: When bthey said to Rabbi Yoḥa:The iḤabbarimhave come to Babylonia, he shuddered and fellof his chair, out of concern for the Jews living there. bThey said to him:There is a way to deal with their persecution, as bthey accept bribes.Upon hearing that not all was lost, bhe straightened himselfand bsatin his place once again.,Apropos the iḤabbarim /i, the Gemara cites the following statement of the Sages: The iḤabbarimwere able to bissue decrees againstthe Jewish people with regard to bthreematters, bdue to threetransgressions on the part of the Jewish people. bThey decreed against meat,i.e., they banned ritual slaughter, bdue tothe failure of the Jewish people to give the priests bthe giftsof the foreleg, the jaw, and the maw. bThey decreed againstJews bathing in bbathhouses, due totheir neglect of ritual bimmersion. /b,Third, bthey exhumed the deadfrom their graves bbecausethe Jews brejoice onthe bholidaysof the gentiles, bas it is stated: “Then shall the hand of the Lord be against you and against your fathers”(I Samuel 12:15). bRabba bar Shmuel said: Thisverse is referring to bexhuming the dead,which upsets both the living and the dead, bas the Master said:Due bto the iniquity of the living, the dead are exhumed. /b, bRava said to Rabba bar Mari: It is written: “They shall not be gathered nor buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth”(Jeremiah 8:2), band it is written: “And death shall be chosen rather than life”(Jeremiah 8:3). If death will be so indecent that their bodies will not even be buried, why would people choose death over life? Rabba bar Mari bsaid to him:The latter verse does not refer to the previously described state of affairs, but rather it means: bDeath is preferable for the wicked,as it is better bthat they not live in this world and sin andconsequently bdescend into Gehenna. /b,The Gemara cites more statements concerning women. bIt is written in the book of Ben Sira: A good wife is a good gift for her husband. And it is written: A good one will be placed in the bosom of a God-fearing man; a bad wife is a plague to her husband. What is his remedy? He should divorce her and he will be cured of his plague. A beautiful wife, happy is her husband; the number of his days are doubled.His pleasure in her beauty makes him feel as though he has lived twice as long., bTurn your eyes from a graceful womanwho is married to another man, blest you be caught in her trap. Do not turn to her husband to mix wine and strong drink with him,which can lead to temptation. bFor onaccount of bthe countece of a beautiful woman many have been destroyed, and her slain is a mighty host.Furthermore, bmany have been the wounded peddlers.This is referring to men who travel from place to place to sell women’s jewelry. Their frequent dealings with women lead their husbands to harm the peddlers. bThose who accustomthemselves bto licentious matters are like a spark that ignites a coal. As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit. /b,The Gemara quotes additional statements from the book of Ben Sira: bDo not suffer from tomorrow’s trouble,that is, do not worry about problems that might arise in the future, bas you do not know what a day will bring. Perhapswhen btomorrow comes,the individual who was so worried will bnotbe among the living, and bhewas bconsequently upset over a world that is not his. Prevent a crowd from inside your house,do not let many people enter, band do noteven bbring allyour friends into byour house.Make sure, however, that ba crowd seeks your welfare,and that you have many allies. bReveal a secret toonly bone in a thousand,since most people are unable to keep a secret., bRabbi Asi said: TheMessiah, bson of David, will not come until all the souls of the body have been finished,i.e., until all souls that are destined to inhabit physical bodies will do so. bAs it is stated: “For the spirit that enwraps itself is from Me, and the souls that I have made”(Isaiah 57:16). bIt is taughtin a ibaraitathat bRabbi Eliezer says: Anyone who does not engage inthe mitzva to be bfruitful and multiplyis considered bas though he sheds blood, as it is stated: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed”(Genesis 9:6), band it is writtenimmediately bafterward: “And you, be fruitful and multiply”(Genesis 9:7)., bRabbi Ya’akov says: It is as though he diminishes theDivine bImage, as it is stated: “For in the image of God He made man”(Genesis 9:6), band it is writtenimmediately bafterward: “And you, be fruitfuland multiply” (Genesis 9:7). bBen Azzai says:It is bas though he sheds blood andalso bdiminishes theDivine bImage, as it is stated: “And you, be fruitful and multiply,”after the verse that alludes to both shedding blood and the Divine Image., bThey said to ben Azzai: Thereis a type of scholar who bexpounds well and fulfillshis own teachings bwell,and another who bfulfills well and does not expound well. But you,who have never married, bexpound wellon the importance of procreation, bandyet byou do not fulfill wellyour own teachings. bBen Azzai said to them: What shall I do, as my soul yearns for Torah,and I do not wish to deal with anything else. bIt is possible for the world to be maintained by others,who are engaged in the mitzva to be fruitful and multiply., bIt issimilarly btaughtin banother ibaraitathat bRabbi Eliezer says: Anyone who does not engage inthe mitzva to be bfruitful and multiplyis considered bas though he sheds blood, as it is stated: “Whoever sheds the blood of man,” andit is stated bnear it: “And you, be fruitfuland multiply.” bRabbi Elazar ben Azarya says:It is bas though he diminishes theDivine bImage. Ben Azzai says:It is as though he both sheds blood and diminishes the Divine Image. bThey said to ben Azzai: There isa type of scholar who bexpounds well, etc. /b, bThe Sages taughtwith regard to the mitzva to be fruitful and multiply: b“And when it rested, he would say: Return, Lord, to the ten thousands of the thousands of Israel”(Numbers 10:36). |
|