Bereshit Rabbah Reader

“God blessed them and God said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it, and dominate over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living creature that crawls upon the earth” (Genesis 1:28). “And dominate over the fish of the sea” – Rabbi Ḥanina said: If they merit it, [they will] dominate [redu], but if not, they will fall [yeredu].42They will become victims to the predations of animals.

Rabbi Yaakov of Kefar Ḥanin said: One who fulfills “in our image, in our likeness – “And dominate”; those who do not fulfill “in our image, in our likeness” – they will fall [yeredu]. Rabbi Yaakov of Kefar Ḥanan said: Let the one who is “in our image, in our likeness”43Man. come “and dominate” the one who does not resemble being “in our image, in our likeness.”44The animals. “God blessed them” – there we learned: A virgin should marry on a Wednesday and a widow on a Thursday.”45Ketubot 2a. Why?

It is because a blessing [for fertility] is written in connection with these days. But, is it not so, that a blessing [for fertility] is written only in connection with Thursday and Friday?46Genesis 1:22 and 1:28. Bar Kapara said: Wednesday means on the eve of Thursday, and Thursday means on the eve of Friday.47The marriage that takes place during the day is consummated at night. Rabbi Elazar in the name of Rabbi Yosei Ben Zimra: “[Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth] and subdue it” [vekhivshuha]48Plural. – it is written [as if it should be read] vekhovshah49Singular. – the man alone is commanded regarding procreation, but not the woman.

Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Beroka says: Both the man and the woman [are commanded]. Regarding both of them it says: “God blessed them […and said: Be fruitful, and multiply…].” Vekhivshuha – it is written [as if it should be read] vekhovshah50Meaning: And subdue her. – the man restrains his wife so she should not go out in public,51In an inappropriate manner. as any woman who goes out in public will ultimately falter.

From where do we derive it? It is from Dina, as it is stated: “Dina went out” (Genesis 34:1) – and she ultimately faltered. That is what is written: “Shekhem saw her…” (Genesis 34:2). Rabbi Yirmeya, Rabbi Abahu, and Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Maryon in the name of Rabbi Ḥanina: The halakha is in accordance with Rabbi Yoḥanan.52Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Beroka.

Rabbi Abahu said: The Holy One blessed be He [Himself] took the cup of blessing,53The cup of wine over which the wedding benedictions are recited. [as it were,] and gave a blessing to them. Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon said: Mikhael and Gavriel were the groomsmen of Adam the first man. Rabbi Samlai said: We have found that the Holy One blessed be He blesses grooms, adorns brides, visits the ill, and buries the dead.

He blesses grooms – from where is it derived? “God blessed them.” He adorns brides – from where is it derived? “The Lord God built the side” (Genesis 2:22).54See Bereshit Rabba 18:1.

He visits the ill – from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “The Lord appeared to him in the plains of Mamre” (Genesis 18:1).55God appeared to Abraham shortly after his circumcision. He buries the dead – from where is it derived? “He buried him56Moses. in the valley” (Deuteronomy 34:6).

Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: He also consoles the mourner. That is what is written: “God appeared to Jacob again…[and He blessed him]” (Genesis 35:9). What blessing did He bless him? It was the blessing of mourners.57This took place immediately after Jacob’s mother died (see Rashi on that verse).

“God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. It was evening and it was morning, the sixth day” (Genesis 1:31). “God saw everything that He had made…” – Rabbi Levi began: “The glory of God is concealing a matter, but the glory of kings is investigating a matter” (Proverbs 25:2) – Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina: From the beginning of the book until here, it is “the glory of God,” [calling for] “concealing a matter.” From here on, “the glory of kings is investigating a matter” – the glory of the words of the Torah that are likened to kings, as it is stated: “Through me kings reign” (Proverbs 8:15),1The speaker is Wisdom personified, that is, the Torah. [calling for] investigating a matter.

Another matter, “God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” –Rabbi Tanḥuma began: “He made everything beautiful in its time” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) – Rabbi Tanḥuma said: The world was created at its proper time; the world was not fit to be created before then. Rabbi Abbahu said: From here we learn that the Holy One blessed be He continuously created worlds and destroyed them, until He created the current ones, and said: This one pleases me, those did not please Me. Rabbi Pinḥas said: Rabbi Abbahu’s source: “God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” – this pleases me, those did not please Me.2“Behold” implies that there was a new, improved situation that had not been there before.

“God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” – Rabbi Yoḥanan said: When a flesh-and-blood king builds a palace, he looks at the upper levels in one glance and at the lower levels in another glance. But the Holy One blessed be He looks at the supernal and the earthly all in one glance. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: “Behold, it was very good” – this is this world. “And, behold, it was very good”3The addition of the word “and” is to introduce a second object. – this is the World to Come.

The Holy One blessed be He looked at this world and the World to Come in one glance. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said in the name of Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya: “Alas! My Lord God, behold, You made the heavens and the earth with Your great power and with Your outstretched arm; there is nothing that is obscured from You” (Jeremiah 32:17). From that moment on, there is nothing that is obscured from You.4Every act in history, since the creation of heaven and earth, is known by God.

Rabbi Ḥagai said in the name of Rabbi Yitzḥak: “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve Him wholeheartedly and with a willing mind, for the Lord seeks all hearts, and understands all inclinations of thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be accessible to you, but if you forsake Him, He will abandon you forever” (I Chronicles 28:9). Even before a thought is formed in a person’s heart, it is already revealed before Him.5Most Hebrew texts have “before You”; see Rashash.

Rabbi Yudan said in the name of Rabbi Yitzḥak: Before a creature is created, his thought is already revealed before Him. Rabbi Yudan himself said: “Even when there is no speech on my tongue, behold, Lord, You know it all” (Psalms 139:4) – even before one’s tongue utters a word, already, “behold, Lord, You know it all.”

Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina and Rabbi Yonatan, Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina said: This is analogous to a king who built a palace. He saw it and it pleased him. He said: ‘Palace, palace, if only you could always find favor before me just as you have found favor before me at this moment.’ So, the Holy One blessed be He said to His world: ‘My world, My world, if only you could always find favor before Me just as you have found favor before Me at this moment.’

Rabbi Yonatan said: This is analogous to a king who was marrying off his daughter, and he made her a bridal canopy and chamber, whitewashed it, embossed it, and painted it. He saw it and it pleased him. He said: ‘My daughter, if only this bridal chamber could always find favor before me just as it has found favor before me at this moment.’ So, the Holy One blessed be He said to His world: ‘My world, My world, if only you could always find favor before Me just as you have found favor before Me at this moment.’

In Rabbi Meir’s Torah they found written: “And, behold, it was very [me’od] good” – and, behold, death [mot] is good.6In a gloss next to the word me’od Rabbi Meir had written mot. Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said: I was once riding on the shoulders of my grandfather, going up from his city to Kefar Ḥanan via Beit She’an, and I heard Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar sitting and expounding in the name of Rabbi Meir: “And, behold, it was very good” – and, behold, death is good.

Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina and Rabbi Yonatan, Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina said: Adam the first man was worthy not to have tasted the taste of death. Why, then, was he penalized with mortality? It is because the Holy One blessed be He foresaw that [his descendants] Nebuchadnezzar and Ḥiram king of Tyre were destined to render themselves deities. That is why he was penalized with mortality.

That is what is written [concerning Ḥiram]: “You were in Eden, the Garden of God” (Ezekiel 28:13). Now, was Ḥiram actually in the Garden of Eden? This is a rhetorical question. Rather, He was saying to him: ‘It is you who caused the one in the Garden of Eden to die.’

Rabbi Ḥiyya, son of Rabbi Berekhya’s daughter, said in the name of Rabbi Berekhya: “You were a great cherub” (Ezekiel 28:14) – it is you [Ḥiram] who caused that cherub [Adam]7Adam is referred to as a cherub due to his lofty spiritual status. to die. Rabbi Yonatan said to him:8To Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina. If so,9If the reason for Adam’s mortality is as you say. let Him decree death for the wicked and not decree death for the righteous.

The reason [He didn’t do this] is that it was so that the wicked should not feign repentance, so that the wicked should not say: ‘Do the righteous not live because they accumulate mitzvot and good deeds? We, too, will accumulate mitzvot and good deeds.’ The result would be acting [virtuously] for insincere motives. Rabbi Yoḥanan and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, Rabbi Yoḥanan said:10In explanation of Rabbi Meir’s statement that death is a good thing.

Why was death decreed for the wicked? The answer is that as long as the wicked are alive, they anger the Holy One blessed be He. That is what is written: “You wearied the Lord with your words” (Malachi 2:17). But once they die, they stop angering the Holy One blessed be He, as it is stated: “There anger has ceased for the wicked” (Job 3:17) – there they stop angering the Lord.

And why was death decreed for the righteous? The answer is that as long as the righteous are alive, they engage in battle against their evil inclination, and when they die, they rest.11In Paradise. That is what is written: “There rest those whose strength is sapped” (Job 3:17) – [those who say:] ‘We have toiled enough.’ Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: It12The benefit of dying and going on to the Next World. is to give these [the righteous] a double reward and to exact double retribution against those [the wicked].

It is to give reward to the righteous who were worthy of never tasting the taste of death. That is why, “therefore, they will inherit a double portion in their land” (Isaiah 61:7). And to exact retribution against the wicked, as the righteous were worthy of never tasting the taste of death, and it was only due to them [the wicked] that they accepted death upon themselves. They will therefore inherit double of what they have earned.13Double punishment. There are other versions that cite the verse: “Shatter them with double destruction” (Jeremiah 17:18).

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar said: “And behold it was very good” – and behold sleep is good. Is sleep, then, very good? This is a rhetorical question. Did we not learn: Wine and sleep are beneficial for them [the wicked] and beneficial for the whole world?14Mishna Sanhedrin 5:5. However, as a result of a person sleeping a bit, he can get up and toil extensively in the Torah.

Rabbi Naḥman bar Shmuel bar Naḥman said in the name of Rav Shmuel bar Naḥman: “Behold it was very good” – this is the good inclination; “and behold it was very good” – this is the evil inclination.15The addition of the word “and” is to introduce a second object. Is the evil inclination, then, very good? This is a rhetorical question. Rather, were it not for the evil inclination, a man would never build a house, would never marry a wife, would never beget children, and would never engage in commerce. Likewise, Solomon says: “[And I have considered all toil and all excelling in work,] that it is each man’s envy of his counterpart” (Ecclesiastes 4:4).

Rav Huna said: “Behold it was very good” – this refers to experiencing good fortune; “and behold it was very good” – this refers to experiencing suffering. Is the experiencing of suffering, then, “very good”? This is a rhetorical question. It is, rather, that through it, people come to attain life in the World to Come. Likewise, Solomon says: “Rebukes of admonition is the way toward life” (Proverbs 6:23). You must say: Go out and see, which path is it that leads a person towards life in the World to Come? This is the experiencing of suffering.

Rabbi Ze’eira said: “Behold it was very good” – this is the Garden of Eden; “and behold it was very good” – this is Gehenna. Is Gehenna, then, very good? This is a rhetorical question. This is analogous to a king who had an orchard. He stationed laborers there and he built a storage house at its entrance. He said: ‘Anyone who performs successfully in the labor of the orchard, he may enter its treasury; anyone who does not perform successfully in the labor of the orchard, he may not enter its treasury.’ So, too, anyone who amasses mitzvot and good deeds, here is the Garden of Eden. Anyone who does not amass mitzvot and good deeds, here is Gehenna.16Gehenna is a good thing in that it spurs man to act virtuously.

Rabbi Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: “Behold it was very good” – this is the angel of life; “and behold it was very good” – this is the angel of death. Is the angel of death, then, “very good”? This is a rhetorical question. Rather, it is analogous to a king who prepared a feast, invited the guests and brought before them a serving dish filled with all kinds of delicacies. He said: ‘Anyone who eats and blesses the king, let him eat and enjoy himself, but anyone who eats and does not bless the king, his head shall be severed with a sword.’ So, too, anyone who amasses mitzvot and good deeds, here is the angel of life, and anyone who does not amass mitzvot and good deeds, here is the angel of death.

Rabbi Shimon bar Abba said: “Behold it was very good [tov me’od]” – this is the [divine] attribute of benevolence [midat tov], “and behold it was very good” – this is the [divine] attribute of strict punishment. Is the attribute of strict punishment, then, “very good”? Rather, He works conscientiously on the punishment, in which manner to bring it.17God makes sure to produce a punishment that corresponds to the person’s misdeed, so that he and others can understand what brought it about and improve their behavior accordingly.

Rabbi Simon said in the name of Rabbi Shimon bar Abba: All the [original divine] measures are now void,18All the processes that God used in creating the world. but the [principle of] measure for measure19The principle that God grants reward and punishment in a manner that corresponds to a person’s acts. has not been voided. Rav Huna said in the name of Rabbi Yosei: From the beginning of the creation of the world, the Holy One blessed be He foresaw [the principle] that in accordance with the measure that a person metes out for others, so is it meted out for him. That is why the Sages said: “And behold it was very good” – this is the attribute of beneficence.

The Rabbis said it in the name of Rabbi Ḥanina bar Idi, Rabbi Pinḥas, and Rabbi Ḥilkiya: “Very [me’od]” and “man [adam]” are identical; the letters of this word are the same as letters of that one. That is what is written: “God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” – this refers to man.

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: “Behold it was very good” – this is the kingdom of Heaven; “and behold it was very good” – this is the kingdom on earth.20In some editions, due to censorship: The kingdom of the Romans. Is the kingdom on earth, then, “very good”? This is a rhetorical question. Rather, [it is good] because it addresses people’s grievances,21The government does this through the enforcement of law and order. as it is stated: “I made the earth and created man upon it” (Isaiah 45:12).22God placed human rulers on the earth to govern it.

“It was evening and it was morning, the sixth day, [and heaven and earth were finished…]” (Genesis 1:31–2:1) – Rabbi Yudan said: This is the additional hour [late Friday afternoon] that one takes away from the profane and adds to the sacred [Shabbat], during which the labor of the world was completed.23God finished the process of creation before the very end of the sixth day, so the end of Friday is itself appended to Shabbat.

That is why “the sixth [day, and heaven and earth were finished]” is written. Rabbi Simon ben Marta said: Until this point, one reckons [the days] according to the count of the world,24The first day of creation, the second day of creation, etc. from here on, one reckons according to a different count.25After this point, one does not count the number of days since creation, but the number of days after Shabbat: The first day after Shabbat (Sunday), the second day after Shabbat (Monday), etc.

“The heavens and the earth and their entire host were completed” (Genesis 2:1). “The heavens and the earth and their entire host were completed.” It is written: “I see an end to all great things, but Your commandments are exceedingly broad” (Psalms 119:96). Everything has boundaries, the heavens and earth have boundaries, with the exception of one matter that does not have boundaries. Which is that? That is the Torah, as it is stated: “Its measure is longer than the earth and broader than the sea” (Job 11:9). Another interpretation: “I see an end to all great things” – this is the work of the creation of the heavens and the earth, as it is stated: “The heavens and the earth…were completed.”

Rabbi Ḥama began: “Remove the dross from silver [and a vessel will emerge for the smith] (Proverbs 25:4) – Rabbi Eliezer said in the name of Rabbi Yaakov: This is analogous to a bathtub that was filled with water, and there were two ornamental bowls in it. As long as it was full of water, the handiwork of the bowls was not visible. Once someone opened the drain and emptied the water from it, the handiwork of the bowls became visible.

So, too, as long as the world was emptiness and disorder, the labor of the heavens and the earth was not visible. Once the emptiness and disorder was uprooted from the world,1Upon the completion of the process of creation. the handiwork of the heavens and the earth became visible. “A vessel [keli] will emerge for the smith” (Proverbs 25:4) – they [the heavens and earth] became [finished] vessels. That is what is written: “The heavens and the earth and their entire host were completed [vaykhulu].”

How did the Holy One blessed be He create His world? Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The Holy One blessed be He took two skeins, one of fire and one of snow, mixed them with one another, and from them the world was created. Rabbi Ḥanina said: Four, for the four directions of the world. Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina said: Six, four for the four directions and one for above and one for below.

Hadrian, may his bones be crushed, once asked Rabbi Yehoshua bar Ḥananya, saying to him: ‘How did the Holy One blessed be He create His world?’ He said to him in accordance with what Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina said. He said to him: ‘Is it possible that it was so?’ This was a rhetorical question.

He took him into a small house and said to him: ‘Extend your hand to east, west, north, and south.’ He said to him: ‘Such was the action done by the Holy One blessed be He.’

Rabbi Hoshaya said: Rabbi Afes expounded in Antioch: “Vaykhulu” is nothing other than an expression of a delivering a blow and an expression of destruction [kelaya]. This is analogous to a king who entered a province and the residents of the province lauded him. Their lauding pleased him, and he provided them with encouragement and incentives. Sometime later, they angered him, so he minimized encouragement and incentives for them.

So, too, until Adam the first man sinned, the celestial bodies would move in a short path, and quickly. After he sinned, He diverted them into a roundabout path, and they went at a slow pace. There are celestial bodies that complete their circuits in twelve months, such as Mercury. And there are celestial objects that complete their circuit in thirty days, namely, the moon.

And there are celestial objects that complete their circuits in twelve years, namely, Jupiter. And there are celestial objects that complete their circuits in thirty years, namely, Saturn. This is all besides Venus and Mars, which complete their circuit only in four hundred and eighty years. 2This is a gloss from an unknown student, which was mistakenly inserted into the Midrash text since the first printed edition.

Rabbi Pinḥas taught in the name of Rabbi Ḥanan of Tzippori: Regarding white fig trees, their Sabbatical Year sanctity takes effect in the second year of the Sabbatical cycle, because they produce fruit after three years,3Mishna Sheviit 5:1. Fruit that is picked two years after the Sabbatical Year began forming during the Sabbatical Year. whereas on that day,4The third day of Creation, when trees were created. they produced fruit in one day.

But in the future, the Holy One blessed be He will heal that impairment, as it is stated: “He will heal the wound of his injury” (Isaiah 30:26) – He will heal the wounds of injuries of all the world.

Bar Sira said: God produced drugs from the earth with which the physician heals the wound, and with which the pharmacist mixes his compounds.12The Wisdom of Ben Sira 38:4. Rabbi Simon said: There is not a single blade of grass that does not have a constellation in the firmament13A heavenly force or an angel that is in charge of it. that strikes it and says to it: ‘Grow.’ That is what is written: “Do you know the rules of the heavens?

Will you establish its dominion [mishtaro] on earth?” (Job 38:33). It is an expression of being in charge [shoter]. “Will you tie the chains of the Pleiades, or untie the reins of Orion?” (Job 38:31) – Rabbi Ḥanina bar Pappa and Rabbi Simon said: Pleiades renders fruits delicate and Orion draws it out from knot to knot.14It causes the fruits to grow to full size. That is what is written: “Will you bring out the Mazarot in its season and guide Ursa with its sons?” (Job 38:32). Rabbi Tanḥuma said: It [Mazarot] is a constellation that softens [memazer] the produce.

The Rabbis say: Even matters that you consider superfluous in the world, like flies, fleas, and gnats, they, too, are included in the creation of the world, and through all of them the Holy One blessed be He executes His missions – even by means of a serpent, even by means of a gnat, even by means of a frog. Rabbi Tanḥuma said it in the name of Rabbi Menaḥma, Rabbi Berekhya in the name of Rabbi Ḥelbo: Rabbi Aḥa would relate this incident: A certain man was standing on the river bank.

He saw a frog carrying a scorpion and transporting it across the river.15The scorpion was sent to kill someone, and crossed the river in an unnatural manner to do so. After it [the scorpion] performed its mission, it [the frog] took it back to its place. Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Ḥanan of Tzippori: There was an incident involving a certain man who was standing to reap his crop in the Bei Tarfa valley.

He saw a stalk of a certain herb, picked it, and crafted it into a wreath for his head. A serpent came and he struck it, killing it. Another man came and stood there to look at the snake. He said: ‘I wonder, who was it who killed this serpent?’

That man said: ‘I killed it.’ He lifted his eyes and saw the stalk of herb that had been crafted into a wreath on his head. He said: ‘Did you really kill it?’ He said: ‘Yes.’

He said: ‘Can you remove that herb from your head?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ Once he removed it he said to him: ‘Can you come over here and lift this serpent with this staff?’ He said: ‘Yes.’

When he approached that serpent, immediately his limbs fell.16The snake had been sent to kill the man. The herb, which apparently contained an antidote to snake venom, saved him from his fate, but eventually the mission was accomplished. Rabbi Yanai was sitting and expounding at the entrance to his city. He saw a serpent slithering and approaching.

When he chased it away from one side, it returned at the other side, and when he chased it away from that side, it returned from the other side. He said: This one is on his way to perform a mission. Thereafter, a sound was heard in the city: So-and-so son of so-and-so was bitten by a serpent and died. Rabbi Elazar was sitting, paying a visit to the latrine.

A Roman came and expelled him, entered in his place and sat himself down. He [Rabbi Elazar] said: This did not occur for naught. Immediately, a serpent emerged and struck him [the Roman], killing him. He applied to him the verse: “I placed a man [adam] in your stead” (Isaiah 43:4) – I placed Edom in your stead.17The Romans were identified with the people of Edom.

Rabbi Yitzḥak ben Elazar was standing and strolling along the shore of the Sea of Caesarea and saw a certain thighbone that was rolling along. He kept pushing it away out of sight, but it kept rolling back. He said: This one is prepared to perform a mission. Several days later, a certain courier passed by, and he stumbled on it and died.

They went and examined him and found that he was carrying evil missives regarding the Jews of Caesarea. The wicked Titus entered the Holy of Holies with a sword drawn in his hand and he cut the two curtains. Then he took two harlots and cohabited with them atop the altar. He emerged with his sword full of blood.

Some say that it was blood of sacrifices, and some say it was the blood of the goat offered on Yom Kippur. He spoke out with blasphemy and sacrilege.18Saying that he had defeated God and this was His blood. He took all the Temple vessels and wrapped them up in a big bundle.19Using the Temple curtain. He again began to speak out with blasphemy and sacrilege against the most High, saying: ‘There is no comparison between one who wages war with the king in the wilderness and defeats him, and one who wages war with the king in his own palace and defeats him there.’

He went down to his ship. When he set sail, a large wave struck him in the sea. He said: ‘It appears that the God of this nation has power only in the water. He exacted retribution against the generation of Enosh only with water, He exacted retribution against the generation of the Flood only with water, He exacted retribution against Pharaoh and his army only with water.

I, too, when I was in His House and His domain He was unable to stand up against me, and now He has confronted me here. He believes that He will kill me in the water.’ The Holy One blessed be He said [an oath] to him: ‘Wicked one, by your life, I will exact retribution from this wicked one [Titus] with a creature that is the smallest of all the creatures I created during the six days of Creation.’

Thereupon, the Holy One blessed be He signaled to the angel of the sea and it calmed from its raging. When he reached Rome, all the residents of Rome emerged and lauded him. When he ascended to Rome [the city], he entered the bathhouse. When he emerged, they poured him a vial of a post-bath elixir with wine to drink.

A gnat entered into his nose and began to continuously gnaw at his brain, until it was as large as a two-pound fowl. He [Titus] issued a command, saying: ‘Open up the brain of this man20Titus referred to himself in third person. to ascertain through what instrument the God of the Jews has exacted retribution from this man.’ Thereupon, they called the surgeons, they opened up his brain and removed what was like a two-pound fowl.

Rabbi Elazar bar Rabbi Yosei said: ‘I saw in Rome that [they placed] a weight of two pounds on one side [of a balance] and the bird-like growth [of Titus] on the other side, and they were equal in weight. They took it and placed it in a bowl. As it [the growth] withered, he [Titus] withered along with it. [When it returned to its natural size,] the gnat flew away and the soul of the evil Titus flew away [as well].’

“God completed on the seventh day His labor that He had made; He rested on the seventh day from all His labor that He had made” (Genesis 2:2). “God completed on the seventh day” – Rabbi Ḥanina said: Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosei took me to a certain inn and said to me: ‘Here my father prayed the Shabbat [evening] prayer before Shabbat.’21On Friday afternoon. Rabbi Yirmeya and Rabbi Aḥa say: Rabbi Yoḥanan raised it as a difficulty: ‘Did my father pray the Shabbat [evening] prayer here before Shabbat?’ he asked in bewilderment.

But there was no need to raise a difficulty, as the donkey drivers had come up from Arav to Tzippori, and said: ‘Rabbi Ḥanina ben Dosa has already begun to observe Shabbat in his city.’ If you wish to raise a difficulty, raise it concerning this [version of the incident]: Rabbi Ḥanina said: Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosei took me to a certain inn and said to me: ‘Did my father pray the post-Shabbat [evening] prayer here on Shabbat?’22The difficulty is: How could he say the post-Shabbat prayer while it was still daytime?

Rabbi Abba said: ‘Concerning this as well there is no need to raise a difficulty, as Rabbi once was sitting and giving a lecture, and [afterwards] he said to Abba Yudan, his spokesman: Announce to the congregation that they should pray the weekday [evening] prayer now, though it is still daytime.’

Rabbi asked Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosei, saying to him: ‘Did you hear from your father what is meant by: “God completed [vayechal] on the seventh day”? This is bewildering.’23God finished the Creation before the seventh day, not on the seventh day. The explanation is that it is like someone who was banging with a hammer onto an anvil. He raised it while it was still day and lowered it after nightfall.24The act was begun before nightfall, so it is counted as being done during the day.

Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai said: A mortal human being who does not know [with certainty] his times, his minutes, and his hours, he must add from the profane to the sacred.25A mortal man cannot determine the exact moment when Shabbat begins, so he must take away some of the weekday hours of Friday and add it on to Shabbat. But the Holy One blessed be He, who knows [with certainty] his minutes, his times, and his hours, entered into it [Shabbat] like a hairbreadth.26God performed labor at a time that appeared to mortal man as though it was already the seventh day, although it was, in fact, not yet Shabbat.

Geniva and the Rabbis, Geniva said: This is analogous to a king who made himself a wedding canopy, painted it and embossed it. What was it lacking? A bride [kalla] to enter it. So, too, what was the world lacking?

Shabbat.27God did create something on the seventh day – namely, Shabbat itself. The Rabbis say: This is analogous to a king for whom they crafted a signet ring. What was lacking? The seal.

So, too, what was the world lacking? Shabbat.28And Shabbat is a sign, like a signet, between God and Israel (Exodus 31:17). This is one of the matters that they changed for King Ptolemy29This was when he gathered seventy Sages to translate the Torah into Greek – the Septuagint (see Megilla 9a). There were several places where the Sages veered from translating literally to evade various problems. – [they wrote] “God completed on the sixth day…and He rested on the seventh day.”

King Ptolemy once asked the rabbis in Rome: ‘In how many days did the Holy One blessed be He create His world?’ They said to him: ‘In six days.’ He said to them: ‘And ever since that time, Gehenna has been burning for the wicked? Woe to the world from its judgments.’

“His labor” – did Rabbi Berekhya not say this in the name of Rabbi Simon: It was not with toil and not with exertion that the Holy One blessed be He created His world.30But, “by the word of the Lord the heavens were made” (Psalms 33:6). And you say “from all His labor”? This is bewildering. The explanation is that it is to exact retribution against the wicked, who demolish the world [as if it were] all created with toil and with exertion, and to grant a reward to the righteous, who sustain the world [as if it were] all created with toil and with exertion.

What was created on it [Shabbat] after He rested [from creating the world]? Tranquility, satisfaction, calm, and quiet. Rabbi Levi in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Rabbi Nehorai: As long as the hands of their Maker were touching them, they [the creations] would continuously expand. When the hands of their Maker let go of them, they were granted rest.

“He rested [Vayanaḥ]31This word can also mean, “He let go.” [on the seventh day]” (Exodus 20:11) – He let go of His world on the seventh day. Rabbi Abba said: A mortal [king], when he grants furlough [to his soldiers], he does not give them gratuities, and when he gives them gratuities, he does not grant them furlough. But the Holy One blessed be He both granted a furlough and gave gratuities: “He rested [on the seventh day from all His labor that He had made]…and God blessed [the seventh day]” (Genesis 2:2–3).

“God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His labor that God created to make” (Genesis 2:3). “God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it” – it is written: “The blessing of the Lord, it will enrich, without adding toil with it” (Proverbs 10:22). “The blessing of the Lord, it will enrich” – this is Shabbat, as it is stated: “God blessed the seventh day.” “Without adding toil [etzev] with it” – this is mourning, just as it says: “The king is in grief [ne’etzav] over his son” (II Samuel 19:3).1Mourning the dead is not observed on Shabbat.

“God blessed the seventh day [and sanctified it]” – Rabbi Yishmael said: He blessed it with manna and He sanctified it with manna. He blessed it with manna in that all the days of the week one omer [of manna] would fall, while on the day before Shabbat two omers would fall.2An extra omer for Shabbat. He sanctified it with manna, as it did not fall on it [on Shabbat] at all. Rabbi Natan says: He blessed it with manna and sanctified it with a blessing.3The Shabbat blessing recited over a cup of wine.

Rabbi Yitzḥak said: He blessed it with manna and sanctified it through the gatherer.4Someone who gathered wood in the wilderness on Shabbat and was put to death (Numbers 15:32–36). The harsh penalty demonstrates the awesome, inviolable sanctity of Shabbat. He blessed it with apparel.5One should wear fine clothing on Shabbat. Rav Huna said: He should change his clothing.6He must change from everyday clothing into special Shabbat garb.

Rabbi Ḥiyya said in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan: He should mix [garments].7If one does not have a complete set of Shabbat clothing, he should at least mix one fine item into the everyday clothing he will wear on Shabbat. Avin bar Ḥisdai said: He should lower [his garments].8If someone does not have any special garments for Shabbat, he should at least wear his ordinary garment in a distinctive manner, e.g., by lengthening it.

Rabbi Yirmeya and Rabbi Ze’eira were walking together [on Shabbat], and the outer garment of Rabbi Yirmeya was raised up,9That type of garment was ordinarily worn folded in order that it be elevated off the ground. but Rabbi Ze’eira lowered his.10By releasing the fold. This shows that one should lower [one’s garments for Shabbat]. Rabbi Elazar says: He blessed it with [the Shabbat] candle,11By enabling it to last longer than usual. and there was an incident involving me [that illustrates this].

One time I kindled a candle on Shabbat eve, and I came and found it burning at the conclusion of Shabbat, and nothing [of the oil] was diminished. He blessed it with the radiance of a person’s face, He sanctified it with the radiance of a person’s face. The radiance of a person’s face all the days of the week is not comparable to the way it is on Shabbat. He blessed it with the lights.12The primordial light of creation, which was hidden away because of Adam’s sin.

Rabbi Shimon bar Yehuda of Kefar Akko says in the name of Rabbi Shimon: Even though the lights were cursed on the day before Shabbat,13When Adam sinned. they were not stricken until the conclusion of Shabbat. This is in accordance with the opinion of the Rabbis, and not in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Ami, as Rabbi Ami said: Adam the first man, his glory14The primordial light. did not spend the night with him.15It was abolished on the day of his creation, before Shabbat.

What is the source? “Man [adam] will not go to rest in his splendor; he is like the beasts that perish” (Psalms 49:13). The Rabbis say: His glory did spend the night with him, and only at the conclusion of Shabbat was his radiance taken from him, as He expelled him from the Garden of Eden. That is what is written: “You alter his countenance and send him away” (Job 14:20).

When the sun set on Shabbat eve, the Holy One blessed be He sought to put away the [primordial] light, but He accorded honor to Shabbat. That is what is written: “God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it” – He blessed it with light. When the sun set on Shabbat eve the [primordial] light continued to function.16Even at night. Everyone began praising [God]; that is what is written: “Under all the heavens they sing His praises,17The Midrash interprets yishrehu as being related to shira, song. and His light is to the ends of the earth” (Job 37:3).

Why was this?18Why is it that “under all the heavens they sing His praises”? Because “His light is to the ends of the earth.” Rabbi Yehuda bar Rabbi Simon said: By the light that the Holy One blessed be He created on the first day, a person could look out and see from one end of the world to the other end. When the Holy One blessed be He looked at the people of the generation of the Flood and the people of the generation of the Dispersion, whose actions were to be corrupt, He arose and hid it away and designated it for the righteous in the future.

From where is it derived that He hid it away? It is as it is stated: “Their light will be withheld from the wicked, and the upraised arm will be broken” (Job 38:15). And from where is it derived that He designated it for the righteous in the future? It is as it is stated: “But the path of the righteous is like a dawning light, growing brighter until the day is established” (Proverbs 4:18).

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Ze’eira: That [primordial] light functioned for thirty-six hours – twelve on the day before Shabbat, twelve on the night of Shabbat, and twelve on Shabbat. As the sun set at the conclusion of Shabbat, darkness began approaching, and Adam the first man became afraid, as it is stated: “And I said that darkness will envelop me [yeshufeni]; night for me is light,” (Psalms 139:11) – that one [the serpent] in whose regard it is written: “He will strike you [yeshufekha] with his head, and you will strike him [teshufenu] with your heel” (Genesis 3:15), is now coming to confront me.19The serpent represents death, as it was through its evil machinations that Adam sinned and was condemned to death.

What did the Holy One blessed be He do? He prepared for him two flint stones and he struck them one against the other. Light emerged from them and he recited a blessing over it. That is what is written: “Night for me is light.”

What blessing did he recite over it? [Blessed be God] Who creates the lights of fire. This is in accordance with the opinion of Shmuel, as Shmuel said: Why does one recite a blessing over light at the conclusion of Shabbat? It is because that time was the beginning of its creation. Rav Huna in the name of Rav and Rabbi Abahu in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan said: One recites a blessing over it [light] at the conclusion of Yom Kippur, as well, because fire rested all that day.20It is forbidden to make a fire all day on Yom Kippur.

He blessed it due to the expenditure.21He gave Shabbat a blessing that people should not suffer a long-term financial loss when spending money to honor it. Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Rabbi Ḥanina: Every day on which there is reduction [among the creations of that day], blessing is written in its regard, and in fact it lacks nothing. On the fifth day, birds and fish were created, and people slaughter and eat birds and trap and eat fish, [reducing their number], but since blessing is written in its regard22Genesis 1:22. it lacks nothing.23The birds and fish replenish themselves through reproduction.

On the sixth day, man and animal were created, and people slaughter and eat animals, and people die, but since blessing is written in its regard24Genesis 1:28. it lacks nothing. But regarding the seventh day what can you say?25Why was it necessary for God to give a blessing for Shabbat? Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Rabbi Ḥanina: It is for the expenditure.

Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Yosei: For the sake of fastidious people, He blessed it with delicacies.26Though such people are very fussy eaters, God blessed Shabbat that all its food should be delicious. Our master [Rabbi] once prepared a feast for Antoninus27A Roman governor who was friendly with him. on Shabbat. He brought before him some cold cooked dishes. He ate them and enjoyed them.

He [Rabbi] prepared another feast for him on a weekday. He brought before him some hot cooked dishes. He said to him: ‘Those [from Shabbat] pleased me more than these.’28Even though the Shabbat dishes were served cold. He said to him: ‘They [the weekday foods] are missing a certain spice.’

He said to him: ‘Is it possible that the pantry of the king is lacking anything?’29Tell me which spice you lack, and I can bring you some from the royal pantry. He said: ‘They are lacking Shabbat. Do you have Shabbat?’ Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosei asked Rabbi, he said to him: ‘The [Jewish] residents of Babylon, by what merit do they live?’

He said to him: ‘It is by the merit of the Torah [which they study diligently].’ ‘And the residents of the Land of Israel, by what merit [do they live]?’ He said to him: ‘It is by the merit of tithes [which they separate from their produce].’ ‘And the residents outside of the Land of Israel, by what merit [do they live]?’ ‘It is by the merit of the fact that they honor Shabbatot and the festivals.’

Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said: One time a certain person in Laodicea invited me and brought before us a round tabletop borne on sixteen poles, and on it was every type of food that was created during the six days of Creation. There was a certain child sitting in the middle of the tabletop and proclaiming and saying: “The earth and all that it holds are the Lord’s, the world and all its inhabitants” (Psalms 24:1).

And why did he go to such lengths?30Why was the child placed there in order to proclaim this? It was so the host should not become haughty [from all his wealth]. I said to him [the host]: ‘Son, from where did you merit all this honor?’ He said to me: ‘I used to be a butcher, and every time I saw a fine animal over the week days, I would set it aside for Shabbat.’

I said to him: ‘It is not for naught that you merited [all this].’ Rabbi Tanḥuma said: There was an incident in Rome on the day before the great fast [Yom Kippur]. There was a certain tailor there and he went [to the market] to purchase a fish. It happened that he and the child [servant] of the governor were vying for it.

This one would offer a higher price and the other one would offer a still higher price, until it reached twelve dinars, and the tailor purchased it. At dinnertime, the governor said to the child: ‘Why did you not bring me a fish?’ He said to him: ‘My master, I will not conceal it from you, I went [to the market] and there was only one fish there and it happened that I and a certain Jew were vying for it.

He offered a higher price and I offered a higher price until it reached twelve dinars. Would you have wanted me to bring you a fish for twelve dinars?’ he asked rhetorically. He said to him: ‘Who is it [who bought the fish]?’ He said to him: ‘A man named such-and-such.’

He sent for him and he came before him. He said to him: ‘What did you see, Jewish tailor, that led you to eat a fish that cost twelve dinars?’ He said to him: ‘My master, we have one day [each year] that atones for us for all the sins we have performed all the days of the year. When it arrives, should we not accord it honor?’

He said to him: ‘Because you adduced a justification for your position, you are exempt [from punishment].’ How did the Holy One blessed be He reward him? He went and cut it open and He brought it about for him that there was a fine gem inside it, and he supported himself from it all his days.

The wicked [governor] Tinneus Rufus asked Rabbi Akiva: ‘How is this day [Shabbat] different from the other days of the week?’31Why should it be treated differently from the other days? He said to him: ‘How is this man [Tinneus Rufus] different from other men?’32Why is it that you are treated differently from other men? He said: ‘What did I say to you and what did you say to me?’ He said to him: ‘You said to me: How is this day different from the other days of the week, meaning, in what way is Shabbat different from every day?

And I said to you: How is this man different other men, meaning, in what way is Tinneus Rufus different from other men?’ He said to him: ‘It is because the king wished to honor me.’ He said to him: ‘This [Shabbat], too, the Holy One blessed be He wished to honor it.’ He said to him: ‘From where can you prove it to me?’33That Shabbat is actually different from other days.

He said to him: ‘The Sambatyon River proves it, as it flows with stones all the days of the week, but on Shabbat it rests.’ He said to him in astonishment: ‘Are you dragging me to a river?’34We are not going to travel to the Sambatyon to witness it, so you have still not proven anything. He said to him: ‘Necromancers, who raise the dead via the male organ, will prove it, as a dead man can be brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat he cannot be brought up.

Let this man [Tinneus Rufus] test this out with his father.’ One time, he [Tinneus Rufus] needed to do so, and he tested it with his father. He was brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat he could not be brought up. On Sunday he brought him up again.

He said to him in bewilderment: ‘Since you died, have you become a Jew? Why were you brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat you could not be brought up?’ He said to him: ‘Anyone who does not observe Shabbat willingly in your place, will observe it here perforce.’ He said to him: ‘Do you have labor there for which you exert yourselves all the days of the week, that you can experience rest on Shabbat?’

He said to him: ‘All the days of the week we are punished, but on Shabbat we rest.’ He [Tinneus Rufus] returned to Rabbi Akiva and said to him: ‘If it is as you say, that the Holy One blessed be He honors the Shabbat, let him not make the wind blow [on Shabbat], let him not make rain fall, let him not allow grass to grow.’ He said to him: ‘May the spirit of that man35Tinneus Rufus. depart from him.

I will tell you a parable: [It is analogous to] two people who resided in the same courtyard. If one does not contribute to the eruv and the other one contributes to the eruv, is it, perhaps, permitted to transport items in the courtyard? However, if one person resides in a courtyard alone, it is permitted for him [to transport items] in the entire courtyard. Here, too, the Holy One blessed be He, because there is no other power that co-exists with Him, and the entire world is His, it is permitted for Him [to transport items] throughout the entire world.

Additionally, those who partook of the manna can attest to it,36That Shabbat is indeed different from the other days of the week. as all the days of the week it would fall, but on Shabbat it did not fall.’

A certain philosopher once asked Rabbi Hoshaya, saying to him: ‘If circumcision is so dear to Him [God], why was it not given to Adam the first man?’37The insinuation of his question was that circumcision is not a divine command, but rather a form of purposeless mutilation. He said to him: ‘Why does this man [the philosopher] shave the corner of [the hair on] his head but leave the corner of his beard?’

He replied: ‘It is because this [the head hair] grew with him in his period of foolishness.’38In his childhood. He said to him: ‘If so, he should put out his eye, sever his hands, and break his legs, because they too grew with him in his period of foolishness.’ He said to him: ‘Have we come to such [frivolous] arguments?’ This was a rhetorical question.

He said to him: ‘It is not possible for me to dismiss you with no response at all. The explanation is that everything that was created during the six days of Creation requires some action [to bring it to its perfected state], e.g., mustard requires sweetening, lupines require sweetening, wheat requires grinding. And even man needs to be perfected.’

Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥalafta: Abraham, in whose regard observance of Shabbat is not mentioned, inherited the world with a limited measure, as it is stated: “Arise, walk about in the land to its length and to its breadth, [as to you I will give it]” (Genesis 13:17). But Jacob, in whose regard observance of Shabbat is mentioned, as it is stated: “He encamped before the city” (Genesis 33:18) – he entered with the dimming of the sun and established Shabbat boundaries [for his camp] while it was still day – [he] inherited the world with no limited measure, as it is stated: “Your descendants will be as the dust of the earth, [and you shall spread out to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south]” (Genesis 28:14).

Another interpretation: Why did He bless it? Rabbi Berekhyah and Rabbi Dostai and Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman. Rabbi Berekhyah and Rabbi Dostai say: Because it has no partner. The first day of the week has the second as its partner, the third the fourth, the fifth the sixth; but the Sabbath has no partner. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman said: Because it is not set aside. A festival may be set aside, the Day of Atonement may be set aside, but the Sabbath is not set aside. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai taught: The Sabbath said before the Holy One, blessed be He: Master of the universe, all of them have a partner, but I have no partner. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to her: The Assembly of Israel is your partner. And when Israel stood before Mount Sinai, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: Remember the word that I said to the Sabbath, "The Assembly of Israel is your partner." This is the commandment: "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8).

Another interpretation: Why did He bless it [Shabbat]? Rabbi Berekhya and Rabbi Dostai and Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, Rabbi Berekhya and Rabbi Dostai say: It is because it does not have a partner. Sunday has Monday [as its partner], Tuesday has Wednesday, Thursday has Shabbat eve. But Shabbat has no partner.39Therefore it required God’s blessing.

Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said: It [the blessing of Shabbat] is in that it cannot be postponed.40It always occurs every seventh day. Festivals may be postponed,41The holy days are observed on particular dates in particular months, so their time is determined when the New Year and New Months are declared by the religious court. These courts are authorized to postpone these declarations in various circumstances.

Yom Kippur may be postponed, but Shabbat cannot be postponed. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai taught: Shabbat said before the Holy One blessed be He: ‘Master of the universe, all of them [the other days] have partners, but I do not have a partner.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to it: ‘The congregation of Israel is your partner.’ When Israel stood before Mount Sinai, the Holy One blessed be He said to them: ‘Remember the matter that I said to Shabbat: The congregation of Israel is your partner.’ That is the meaning of the statement in the Ten Commandments: “Remember the Shabbat day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Hama bar Hanina: Three creations the Holy One, blessed be He, would create on each and every day. On the first day He created heaven and earth and light; on the second, the firmament and Gehinnom and angels; on the third, trees and grasses and the Garden of Eden; on the fourth, the sun and the moon and the constellations; on the fifth, birds and fish and Leviathan; on the sixth, Adam and Eve and creeping things. Rabbi Pinhas said: On the sixth He created six: Adam and Eve and creeping thing, and domesticated animal and wild animal and fatted beasts. Rabbi Banaya said: It is not written here "which God created and made," but rather "which God created to make" (Genesis 2:3). All that the Holy One, blessed be He, was destined to create on the seventh day, He anticipated and created on the sixth.

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina: The Holy One blessed be He created three creations on each day. On the first day He created the heavens, the earth, and light; on the second day, the firmament, Gehenna, and angels; on the third day, trees, grasses, and the Garden of Eden; on the fourth day, the sun, the moon, and the constellations; on the fifth day, birds, fish, and Leviathan; on the sixth day, Adam, Eve, and crawling creatures.

Rabbi Pinḥas said: On the sixth day, He created six things: Adam, Eve, crawling creatures, animals, beasts, and demons. Rabbi Benaya said: “That God created and made” is not written here, but rather, “that God created to make” – everything that the Holy One blessed be He was going to create on the seventh day, He created them early, on the sixth day.

Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya: Although it says: “Because on it He rested from all His labor,” from the labor of creating His world He rested,42“Because on it He rested from all His labor that God created” implies that it was only from His own labor that He rested, but there were other types of labor that continued. but he did not rest from the labor of the wicked nor from the labor of the righteous.

Rather, he performs actions with these and with those. He shows to these the essence of what is their fate and to those the essence of their fate.43He punishes the wicked and rewards the righteous, all in accordance with what has been determined by their deeds. This kind of “labor” never ceased. From where is it derived that the punishment of the wicked is called labor?

It is as it is stated: “The Lord opened His armory and took out the weapons of His fury, for it is labor [for the Lord]” (Jeremiah 50:25). And from where is it derived that the reward of the righteous is called labor? It is as it is stated: “How great is the goodness You have in store for those who fear You, which You have fashioned44The expression ”fashioning” is associated with labor. for those taking refuge in You, in the presence of people” (Psalms 31:20).

"These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created" (Genesis 2:4). It is written: "Behold, these are but the ends of His ways" (Job 26:14). Rav Huna said: All that you see are but the ends of the ways of the Holy One, blessed be He. "Behold, these are but the ends of His ways; and what a mere whisper of a word do we hear of Him! But the thunder of His mighty deeds, who can understand?" Rav Huna said: This thunder, when it goes forth as it should, no creature can withstand it. It is not written here "let us understand," but rather "who can understand" -- the clever ones know its hint and its meaning. Rav Huna said: If you cannot withstand the order of the thunder, how much more so the order of the world! It is astonishing. And if a person should say to you, "I am able to comprehend the order of the world," say to him: After a king of flesh and blood you are not able to stand; after the King of kings of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, are you able to stand? It is astonishing. Rav Nachman said: A parable of a thicket of reeds, which no person was able to enter, for whoever entered it would lose his way. What did one clever person do? He cut and entered, cut and entered. He entered by way of the cutting and went out by way of the cutting. Then all began to gather and go out by way of the cutting. Rav Nachman gave another parable: a parable of a great palace that had many entrances, so that whoever entered it would lose his way. What did one clever person do? He took a ball of cord and tied it opposite the entrance, and entered by way of the cord and went out by way of the cord. Then all began to enter and go out by way of the cord. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai said: A parable of a king of flesh and blood who built a palace, and people would enter it and say, "If only the columns were taller, it would be beautiful. If only the walls were taller, it would be beautiful. If only the ceiling were higher, it would be beautiful." But will a person come and say, "If only I had three eyes, if only I had three feet, it would be lovely for me"? It is astonishing! It is not said here "that which He has already made," but rather "that which they have already made" (Ecclesiastes 2:12) -- as it were, the King of kings of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, and His court are counted over every single limb of yours and set you upon your base, as it is said: "Do you thus requite the LORD, O foolish people and unwise? Is not He your father who acquired you? He made you and established you" (Deuteronomy 32:6). Rabbi Levi bar Chayta said: A king of flesh and blood builds a palace, and if he puts its drainpipe at its entrance it is not beautiful; but the King of kings of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He, created this man and put his drainpipe at his entrance, and it is beautiful, and it is to His praise. Rabbi Yitzchak bar Meryon said: It is written, "And the LORD God formed the man" (Genesis 2:7); and what does Scripture teach by saying "which He had formed" (Genesis 2:8)? As it were, the Holy One, blessed be He, takes pride in His world and says, "See the creature that I have created and the form that I have formed." Rabbi Yitzchak bar Meryon said: It is written, "These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created" (Genesis 2:4) -- their Creator praises them, and who shall disparage them? Their Creator extols them, and who shall find fault in them? Rather, they are beautiful and they are praiseworthy, as it is said: "These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made earth and heaven" (Genesis 2:4).

“These are the outgrowths of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, on the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens” (Genesis 2:4). “These are the outgrowths [toledot] of the heavens and of the earth when they were created” – it is written: “Behold, these are but the edges of His ways…” (Job 26:14). Rav Huna said: All the things that you see are just the edges of the ways of the Holy One blessed be He.

“Behold, these are but the edges of His ways, and how a trace is heard about Him; who can investigate the thunder of His might?” (Job 26:14). Rav Huna said: Thunder, when it emerges in its full force, no creature can understand it. “Who has investigated?” is not written, but rather, “who can investigate?” Clever people may have vague knowledge or ideas about it, [but even they cannot understand it fully].

Rav Huna said: If you are unable to understand [even] the workings of thunder, is it not all the more so for the workings of the [whole] world? That is a rhetorical question. If1This paragraph is an exposition on the verse “What is man, that he should come along after the King, after they have already done something?” (Ecclesiastes 2:12). The Midrash will soon explain why the verse says ‘they.’ a person says to you: I can understand the workings of the world, say to him: ‘If you are unable to understand even a flesh-and-blood king, are you able to understand the King of kings, the Holy One blessed be He?

That is a rhetorical question.’ Rav Naḥman said: This2This paragraph is an exposition on the first half of the aforementioned verse: “I devoted myself to acquire wisdom” (Ecclesiastes 2:12). After Solomon acquired his wisdom, others were able to take advantage of it as well. is analogous to a thicket of reeds into which no person could enter, as anyone who entered into it would lose his way. What did one clever person do?

He continuously cut down [reeds] and entered further and further into the thicket. He entered via the clearing and exited via the clearing. Everyone then began entering and exiting via the clearing. Rav Naḥman said differently: This is analogous to a great palace that had many entrances.

Everyone who entered it would lose his way. What did one clever person do? He took a spool of string and tied it [on one end] opposite the entrance and he entered by means of the spool3Unwinding the string as he went along. and exited by means of the spool. Everyone then began entering and exiting by means of the spool.

Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai said: This is analogous to a flesh-and-blood king who built a palace. People entered into it and said: If the pillars were taller it would be nicer, if the walls were higher it would be nicer, if the ceiling were higher it would be nicer. But did a person ever come and say: If I had three eyes, if I had three legs, it would be better for me? That is a rhetorical question.

“After He has already done” is not written, but rather, “after they have already done” (Ecclesiastes 2:12). The King of kings, the Holy One blessed be He, and His court conferred, as it were, over each and every limb of yours, and established it at its proper configuration, as it is stated: “Will you repay the Lord this, crude and unwise people? Is He not your father, your redeemer? He made you, and He established you” (Deuteronomy 32:6).

Rabbi Levi bar Ḥaita said: When a flesh-and-blood king builds a palace, if he would place its drain pipe at its entrance it would not be becoming. But the King of kings, the Holy One blessed be He, created man and placed his drain pipe at his entrance,4This refers to the nose, which is right at the front of one’s face. and it is becoming, and it is [in fact] a person’s glory. Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Maryon said: It is written: “The Lord God formed the man” (Genesis 2:7).

Why, then, does the verse state [again]: “Whom He had formed” (Genesis 2:8)? The Holy One blessed be He was taking pride in His world, as it were, saying: ‘See the creation that I created and the form that I formed.’ Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Maryon said: It is written: “These are the outgrowths of the heavens and of the earth when they were created” – their Creator praises them, who can disparage them? Their Creator lauds them, who will find fault with them?

Rather, they are beautiful and praiseworthy, as it is stated: “These are the outgrowths of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, on the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.”

Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Levi: “When they were created [behibare’am]” – with heh [beheh]5Effortlessly, with the ease it takes to pronounce the letter heh (see section 10). He created them [bera’am]. “My hand made all these [eleh], and all these came into being, the utterance of the Lord, but to this I will look; to the poor and the depressed and those fervent for My word” (Isaiah 66:2) – Rabbi Yehuda said in the name of Rabbi Simon: It was not with exertion and not with toil that the Holy One blessed be He created the world, as it is stated: “My hand made all these, [and all these came into being, the utterance of the Lord].”6The implication of this verse is that the world was created through the mere utterance of the Lord.

Rabbi Yudan said: By the merit of the Torah, as it is stated: “These [eleh] are the statutes and ordinances and laws which the Lord gave between Him and the children of Israel at Mount Sinai by the hand of Moses” (Leviticus 26:46). Rabbi Yehoshua bar Neḥemya says: By the merit of the tribes, as it is stated: “These [eleh] are the names” (Exodus 1:1). And it is stated: “And all these [eleh] came into being.”

Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Nechemyah. Rabbi Yehudah says: "And the heavens and the earth were finished" (Genesis 2:1) in their time, "and all their host" (ibid.) in their time. Rabbi Nechemyah said to him: But is it not written: "These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created" (Genesis 2:4), which teaches that on that very day they were created, and on that very day they brought forth their generations? He said to him: But is it not written: "And there was evening and there was morning, one day" (Genesis 1:5), a second day, a third day, a fourth day, a fifth day, a sixth day? Rabbi Nechemyah said to him: They are like those who gather figs, each and every one appearing in its time. Rabbi Berekhyah, concerning this teaching of Rabbi Nechemyah, said: "And the earth brought forth" (Genesis 1:12), a thing that was already deposited in its hand.

“These are [eleh] the outgrowths of the heavens [when they were created, on the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens]…” – Rabbi Abahu said: Everywhere eleh is stated, it rejects what preceded it; ve’eleh adds to what preceded it. Here, where it says eleh, it excludes what preceded it. What, then, does it exclude? Emptiness, disorder, and darkness.7The state that preceded the creation of the earth and the heavens (Genesis 1:2).

Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Neḥemya, Rabbi Yehuda says: “The heavens and the earth…were completed” (Genesis 2:1) – at their designated time. “And their entire host” (Genesis 2:1) – at their designated time.8The heavens and the earth on the one hand, and their hosts on the other hand, were created on separate days. Rabbi Neḥemya said to him: But is it not written: “These are the outgrowths of the heavens and of the earth when they were created [on the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens]” – which teaches that on the same day they were created they produced their outgrowths? He said to him: But is it not written: “It was evening, it was morning, one day…a second day…a third day…a fourth day…a fifth day…a sixth day”?9With different items created on each day. Rabbi Neḥemya said: They are like people picking figs; each one of them appears at its time.10All the buds of the figs are present at the beginning of the season, but they ripen gradually, each one in its time. So, too, the outgrowths of the heavens and the earth were present in an incipient form from the beginning, and grew into their final form during the subsequent days. Rabbi Berekhya said in support of Rabbi Neḥemya’s teaching: “The earth brought forth [vegetation]” (Genesis 1:12) – [“bringing forth” indicating] something that was already stored inside it.