“On the eighth day it shall be an assembly for you; you shall not perform any toilsome labor” (Numbers 29:35). “On the eighth day it shall be an assembly for you” – this is what the verse said: “You added for the nation, Lord” (Isaiah 26:15).34It says in the previous verse: “The dead, they will not live; spirits, they will not rise; therefore, You reckoned with them, and You destroyed them and eradicated all memory of them” (Isaiah 26:14).
The congregation of Israel said before the Holy One blessed be He: Master of the universe, have You added tranquility to the generation of the Flood? Did they, perhaps, sacrifice one bull or one ram? It is not enough for them that they did not respect You, but they said: “Come, let us build us a city” (Genesis 11:4); and likewise the people of Sodom, and likewise Pharaoh, and likewise Sennacherib, and likewise Nebuchadnezzar?
Did any of them, perhaps, sacrifice one bull or one ram? It is not enough that they did not sacrifice, but they angered you. To whom is it appropriate for You to add tranquility and honor? It is to Israel, as it is stated: “You added for the nation [goy], Lord,” and goy is none other than Israel, as it is stated: “Who is like Your people, like Israel, one nation [goy] on earth?” (II Samuel 7:23).
The congregation of Israel said before the Holy One blessed be He: ‘Master of the universe, it is incumbent upon You to give us the festivals, and it is incumbent upon us to sacrifice offerings before you as appropriate. “You are honored” (Isaiah 26:15) – You gave us New Moons, and we sacrifice before You, as it is stated: “And on your New Moons [you shall present a burnt offering to the Lord]” (Numbers 28:11).
We sacrificed to You on Passover; we sacrificed to You on the New Year; we sacrificed to You on Yom Kippur, and likewise on the Festival.35Sukkot We did not abolish even one festival.’ The congregation of Israel said before the Holy One blessed be He: ‘You should add festivals for us, and it is incumbent upon us to sacrifice before You and honor You’: “You added for the nation; You are honored; You distanced them to all ends of the earth” (Isaiah 26:15).36The other nations, for whom the seventy bulls were sacrificed, were distanced, as opposed to Israel, who were honored and given an extra festival (Radal).
The Holy One blessed be He said to them: ‘As you live, I will not retract holidays from you, but rather, I will add festivals for you during which you will rejoice, as it is stated: “On the eighth day…an assembly.”’