Hebraic Literature (1901) Reader

The great importance of this ceremonial washing of the hands will appear from the following anecdote, which we quote verbatim from another part of the Talmud: — "It happened onoe, as the Rabbis teach, that Rabbi Akiva was immured in a prison, and Yehoshua Hagarsi was his attendant. One day the gaoler said to the latter as lie entered, ( What a lot of water thou hast brought to-day! Dost thou need it to sap the walls of the prison? > So saying, he seized:the vessel and poured out half of the water.

When Yehoshua brought;in what was left of the water to Rabbi Akiva, the latter, who was weary of waiting, for he was faint and thirsty, reproachfully said to '3iim, ( Yehoshua, dost thou forget that I am old, and my very life • depends upon thee?* When the servant related what had happened, the Rabbi asked for the water to wash his hands, <Why, master/ isaid Yehoshua, ( there's not enough for thee to drink, much less to "•cleanse thy hands with.* To which the Rabbi replied, <What am I to do?

They who neglect to wash their hands are judged worthy of death; 'tis better that I should die by my own act from thirst than act against the rules of my associates. > And accordingly it is.related that he abstained from tasting anything till they brought him water to wash his hands.® (Eiruvin, fol. 21, col. 2. See also Maimonides, Hilc. Berach., vi. 19.)

How then, it may be asked, if these five tokens of the Divine presence and favor which rendered the first Temple so glorious were wanting in the second could it be said (Hag. ii. 9), "The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former w? It is a question which it is natural to ask, and it should be ingenuously answered. Is it that these were tending to usurp the place of the spiritual, of which they were but the assurance and the symbol, and darken rather than reveal the eternal reality they adumbrated?

There was a great court at Jerusalem called Beth Yaazek, where all witnesses (who could testify to the time of the appearance of the new moon) used to assemble, and where they were examined by the authorities. Grand feasts were prepared for them as an inducement to them to come (and give in their testimony). Formerly they did not move from the place they happened to be in when overtaken by the Sabbath, but Rabbon Gamliel the elder ordained that they might in that case move two thousand cubits either way.

One part of this regulation is rather hard and should surely be abolished; that, viz, which ordains a woman shall not come between two men or a man pass between two women. The compiler of this Miscellany was once witness to a case which illustrates its inconvenience: it occurred at Tiberias. A pious young Jew who had to traverse a narrow road to pass from the lake to the town was kept standing for a very considerable time under a broiling sun, simply because two young women, to tease him, guarded the entrance, and dared him to pass between them.

Of course he dared not accept the challenge, otherwise he would have incurred the penalty of death, according to the judgment of the Talmud; for " Whosoever transgresses any of the words of the Scribes is guilty of death." (Eiruvin, fol. 21, col. 2.)

day. This is according to the school of Shammai; but the school of Hillel say that he should light up one on the first day, two on the second, increasing the number by one each of the eight days of the fast.... What is the origin of the feast of Dedication? On the twenty-fifth day of Kislev (about December), the eight days of the Dedication commence, during which term no funeral oration is to be made, nor public fast to be decreed.

When the Gentiles (Greeks) entered the second Temple, it was thought they had defiled all the holy oil they found in it; but when the Hasmoneans prevailed and conquered them, they sought and found still one jar of oil stamped with the seal of the High Priest, and therefore undefiled. Though the oil it contained would only have sufficed for one day, a miracle was performed, so that the oil lasted to the end of the week (during which time more oil was provided and consecrated for the future service of the Temple).

In the olden time it was not the fashion for a Jew to wear black shoes (Taanith, fol. 22, col. 1). Even now, in Poland, a pious Jew, or a Chasid, would on no account wear polished boots or a short coat, or neglect to wear a girdle. He would at once lose caste and be subjected to persecution, direct or indirect, were he to depart from a custom. Custom is law, is an oft-quoted Jewish proverb, one among the most familiar of their household words, as " Custom is a tyrant, M is among ours. Another saying we have is, " Custom is the plague of wise men, but is the idol of fools.

(3.) the excellency of the ox over domestic cattle; and (4.) the lion's excellency over the wild beasts. All were fixed under the chariot of God; as it is said (Ezek. i. 10), wAs for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, the face of a lion, the face of an ox, and the face of an eagle. 8 And why all this? In order that they should not exalt themselves, but know that there is a kingdom of heaven over them; and on this account it is said (Kccles. v. 8), " He that is higher than the highest regardeth, and there be higher than they.** This is the meaning of Exod. xv. 1: "

Rabbi Oshaia asked, " What is this that is written, (Zech. xi. 7), (I took unto me two staves; the one I called Amiable and the other Destroyer? The staff called Amiable represents the disciples of the wise in the land of Israel, who were friendly one toward another in their debates about the law. The staff called Destroyer represents the disciples of the wise of Babylon, who in the like debates were fierce tempered and not friendly toward one another. What is the meaning of Babel or Babylon? Rabbi Yochanan says it means "confused in the Bible, confused in the Mishna, and confused in the Talmud." " He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of oldw (Lam. iii. 6).

" Ye weep, returned Akiba, c< from the very reason which causes my heart to be glad. Is it not written, (And testify to me, ye faithful witnesses, Uriah, the priest, and Zachariah, the son of Berachiahu? > Now what hath Uriah to do with Zachariah? Uriah lived during the existence of the first Temple, and Zachariah during the second. Know ye not that the prophecy of Uriah is compared to the prophecy of Zachariah.

From Uriah's prophecy we find, ( Therefore for your sake Zion will be plowed as is a field, and Jerusalem will be a desolation, and the mount of Zion shall be as a forest; } and in Zachariah we find, ( They will sit, the old men and women, in the streets of Jerusalem. Before the prophecy of Uriah was accomplished I might have doubted the truth of Zachariah' s comforting words; but now that one has been accomplished, I feel assured that the promises to Zachariah will also come to pass, therefore am I glad.8

"And it came to pass, when the army of the Chaldeans had gone up from before the army of Pharaoh" (and so forth, Jeremiah 37:11), Jeremiah went out of Jerusalem to go to Anathoth to take his portion among his brethren the priests. And he was going out by the gate of Benjamin, and there was a certain man appointed over those who entered and those who went out; he was Irijah son of Shelemiah son of Hananiah son of Azzur, the false prophet, who had been leading astray the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, "Behold, the vessels of the house of the LORD shall now shortly be brought back from Babylon" (Jeremiah 27:16), "Do not fear." When Jeremiah heard him, he said to him: Amen, may your words be confirmed and may mine be annulled. I profit and you lose. I am a priest and eat from the Temple, and you are a Gibeonite, a hewer of wood and a drawer of water for the altar. Since you are prophesying about the house of the Holy One, blessed be He, prophesy about yourself, that this year you will die and be buried. In the second year he saw him going out by the gate of Benjamin. He went and seized him and said to him: You are going out to the Chaldeans to make peace with them. Jeremiah said to him: You speak falsely; I am going to take my portion with the priests. He seized him and brought him out before the officials. He said to them: This man has done us much harm, and I found him going out to the Chaldeans to make peace with them. The officials were angry with him and beat him and put him in the prison house, in the house of Jonathan the scribe. At that hour Zedekiah sent and brought him to him and said to him: Is there any word from the LORD? Jeremiah said to him: There is a word; in the future the king of Babylon will carry you into exile. The face of Zedekiah changed, and he was enraged against Jeremiah. And Zedekiah gave orders concerning Jeremiah and put him in the prison house and gave him bread for the day until the bread was finished from Jerusalem, and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard. At that hour they came to Zedekiah the king and said to him: This man prophesies many evils against us; he does not seek the welfare of this place. He answered and said to them: Behold, he is in your hand; do as is good in your eyes. They took Jeremiah and cast him into the pit of Malchiah son of the king, and the pit was full of water. The Holy One, blessed be He, performed miracles for him: the water went down below and the mire came up above, and Jeremiah sank into the mire.

The high priest donned his robe and ephod, and saying, " Now that the Temple is destroyed, no priest is needed to officiate,8 threw himself into the flames and was consumed. When the other priests who were still alive witnessed this action, they took their harps and musical instruments and followed the example of the high priest. Those of the people whom the soldiers had not killed were bound in iron chains, burdened with the spoils of the victors, and carried into captivity.

Jeremiah the prophet returned to Jerusalem and accompanied his unfortunate brethren, who went out almost naked. When they reached a place called Bet Kuro, Jeremiah obtained better clothing for them. And he spoke to Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans, and said, " Think not that of your own strength you were able to overcome the people chosen of the Lord; 'tis their iniquities which have condemned them to this sorrow.

Avodak Zarak, fol. 26, col. 1. Rabbi BHezer ben Hyrcanus was twentytwo years of age when, contrary to the wishes of his father, he went to Rabbon Yochanan ben Zaccai purposing to devote himself to the study of the law. By the time he arrived at Rabbon Yochanan 's he had been without food four-andtwenty hours, and yet, though repeatedly asked whether he had had anything to eat, refused to confess he was hungry.

His father having come to know where he was, went one day to the place on purpose to disinherit him before the assembled Rabbis. It so happened that Rabbon Yochanan was at that time lecturing before some of the great men of Jerusalem, and when he saw the father enter, he pressed Rabbi Eliezer to deliver an exposition. So racy and cogent were his observations that Rabbon Yochanan rose and styled him his own Rabbi, and thanked him in the name of the rest for the instruction he had afforded them. Then the father of Rabbi Eliezer said,

On arriving at the royal city, three days were allowed to pass before he was introduced to Solomon. On the first day he said, ^Why does the king not invite me into his presence? ® " He has drunk too much,® was the answer, "and the wine has overpowered him.® Upon which he lifted a brick and placed it upon the top of another. When this was communicated to Solomon, he replied "He meant by this, go and make him drunk again.® On the day following he asked again, " Why does the king not invite me into his presence? ® They replied, "He has eaten too much.® On this he removed the brick again from the top of the other. When this was reported to the king, he interpreted it to mean," Stint him in his food.®

Rava said, " Life, children, and competency do not depend on one's merit, but on luck; for instance, Rabbah and Rav Chasda were both righteous Rabbis; the one prayed for rain and it came, and the other did so likewise with the like result; yet Rav Chasda lived ninety-two years and Rabbah only forty. Rav Chasda, moreover, had sixty weddings in his family during his lifetime, whereas Rabbah had sixty serious illnesses in his during the short period of his life.

At the house of the former even the dogs refused to eat bread made of the finest wheat flour, whereas the family of the latter were content to eat rough bread of barley and could not always obtain it.® Rava also added, " For these three things I prayed to Heaven, two of which were and one was not granted unto me. I prayed for the wisdom of Rav Hunna and for the riches of Rav Chasda, and both these were granted unto me; but the humility and meekness of Rabbah, the son of Rav Hunna, for which I also prayed, was not granted.®

"There are two ways before me, one leading into Paradise, the other into Hell.8 When Yochanan, the son of Zachai, was sick unto death, his disciples came to visit him; and when he saw them he wept, upon which his disciples exclaimed, " Light of Israel! Pillar of the right! Mighty Hammer! why weepest thou?8 He replied, "If I were going to be led into the presence of a king, who is but flesh and blood, to-day here and to-morrow in the grave, whose anger with me could not last forever, whose sentence against me, were it even unto death, could not endure forever, and whom perhaps I might pacify with words or bribe with money, yet for all that should I weep; but now that I am about to enter the presence of the King of kings, the Holy One — blessed be He forever and ever! — whose anger would be everlasting, whose sentence of death or imprisonment admits of no reprieve, and who is not to be pacified with words nor bribed with money, and in whose presence there are two roads before me, one leading into Paradise and the other into Hell, and should I not weep?

Then prayed they him, and said, ft Rabbi, give us thy farewell blessing; and he said unto them, " Oh that the fear of God may be as much upon you as the fear of man. •

Rabbi Eleazer said, " Abraham and Jacob were born in Tiskri, and in Tishri they died. On the first of Tishri the universe was created, and during the Passover was Isaac born. On the first of Tishri (New Year), Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah, three barren women, were visited. On the first day of Tishri our ancestors discontinued their rigorous labor in Egypt. On the first of Tishri Adam was created; from his existence we count our years, that is the sixth day of the creation. On that day, too, did he eat of the forbidden fruit, therefore is the season appointed for one of penitence, for the Lord said to Adam, 'This shall be for a sign in future generations; thy descendants shall be judged upon these days, and they shall be appointed as days of pardon and forgiveness.*

If one finds a scroll, he may peruse it once in thirty days, but he must not teach out of it, nor may another join him in reading it; if he does not know how to read, he must unroll it. If a garment be found, it should be shaken and spread out once in thirty days, for its own sake (to preserve it), but not for display. Silver and copper articles should be used to take care of them, but not for the sake of ornament. Gold and glass vessels he should not meddle with — till the coming of

On the ninth of Ab one must abstain from eating and drinking, and anointing one's self, and wearing shoes, and matrimonial intercourse. He may not read the Bible, the Talmud, the Midrash, the Halachoth, or the Haggadoth, excepting such portions as he is not in the habit of reading, such he may then read. The Lamentations, Job, and the hard words of Jeremiah should engage his study. Children should not go to school on this day, because it is said (Ps. xix. 8), "The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart."

The following anecdotes are related by way of practically illustrating Ps. ii. II, "Rejoice with trembling. Mar, the son of Ravina, made a grand marriage-feast for his son, and when the Rabbis were at the height of their merriment on the occasion, he brought in a very costly cup, worth four hundred zouzim, and broke it before them, and this occasioned them sorrow and trembling. Rav Ashi made a grand marriagefeast for his son, and when he noticed the Rabbis in high jubilation, he brought in a costly cup of white glass and broke it before them, and this made them sorrowful.

The Rabbis challenged Rav Hamnunah on the wedding of his son Ravina, saying, "Give us a song, sir," and he sung, "Woe be to us, for we must die! Woe be to us, for we must die! B " And what shall we sing?" they asked in chorus by way of response. He replied, " Sing ye, ( Alas! where is the law we have studied? where the good works we have done? that they may protect us from the punishment of hell! ' Rabbi Yochanan, in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai, says, " It is unlawful for a man to fill his mouth with laughter in this world, for it is said in Ps. cxxvi., Then (but not now) will our mouth be filled with laughter, etc. It is related of Resh Lakish that he never

Rav Ulla was once asked, To what extent is one bound to honor his father and mother? To which he replied, " See what a Gentile of Askelon once did, Dammah ben Nethiua by name. The sages one day required goods to the value of sixty myriads, for which they were ready to pay the price, but the key of the store-room happened to be under the pillow of his father, who was fast asleep, and Dammah would not disturb dim.* Rabbi Eliezer was once asked the same question, and he gave the same answer, adding an interesting fact to the illustration: " The sages were seeking after precious stones for the high priest's breastplate, to the value of some sixty or eighty myriads of golden denarii, but the key of the jewel-chest happened to be under the pillow of his father, who was asleep at the time, and he would not wake him.

In the following year, however, the Holy One — blessed be He! — rewarded him with the birth of a red heifer among his herds, for which the sages readily paid him such a sum as compensated him fully for the loss he sustained in honoring his parent.*

When one stands at the judgment-seat of God these questions are asked: —. " Hast thou been honest in all thy dealings?". " Hast thou set aside a portion of thy time for the study of the law?". " Hast thou observed the first commandment? ". * Hast thou, in trouble, still hoped and believed in God?". " Hast thou spoken wisely. All the blessings of a household come through the wife, therefore should her husband honor her.

Men should be careful lest they cause women to weep, for God counts their tears. In cases of charity, where both men and women claim relief, the latter should be first assisted. If there should not be enough for both, the men should cheerfully relinquish their claims. A woman's death is felt by nobody as by her husband. Tears are shed on God's altar for the one who forsakes his first love.

To which the Gentile made answer, "When you speak of the written law, I believe you, but in your oral law I have no faith. Nevertheless, you may make me a proselyte on condition that you teach me the written law only.* Upon this Shamai rated him sharply, and sent him away with indignant abuse. When, however, this Gentile came with the same object, and proposed the same terms to Hillel, the latter proceeded at once to proselytize him, and on the first day taught him Aleph, Beth, Gemel, Daleth.

On the morrow Hillel reversed the order of these letters, upon which the proselyte remonstrated and said, " But thou didst not teach me so yesterday. "True," said Hillel, " but thou didst trust me in what I taught thee then; why, then, dost thou not trust me now in what I tell thee respecting the oral law?

Alexander of Macedon proposed ten queries to the elders of the south: — " Which are more remote from each other, the heavens from the earth or the east from the west?" They answered, "The east is more remote from the west, for when the sun is either in the east or in the west, any one can gaze upon him; but when the sun is in the zenith or heaven, none can gaze at him, he is so much nearer.* The Mishnaic Rabbis, on the other hand, say they are equidistant; for it is written (Ps. ciii. 11, 12), "As the heavens are from the earth,... so is the east removed from the west."

Alexander then asked, " Were the heavens created first or was the earth? " The heavens," they replied, " for it is said, ( In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. >M He then asked, "Was light created first or was darkness?" They replied, "This is an unanswerable question." They should have answered darkness was created first, for it is said, "And the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the

by bridges, and erected baths. To this remark Rabbi Yossi kept silent, but Rabbi Shimon replied, "Yea, indeed; but all these they have done to benefit themselves. The markets they have opened to feed licentiousness, they have erected baths for their own pleasure, and the bridges they have raised for collecting tolls. Yehudah ben Gerim thereupon went direct and informed against them, and the report having reached the Emperor's ears, an edict was immediately issued that Rabbi Yehudah should be promoted, Rabbi Yossi banished to Sepphoris, and Rabbi Shimon taken and executed.

Rabbi Shimon and his son, however, managed to secret themselves in a college, where they were purveyed to by the Rabbi's wife, who brought them daily bread and water. One day mistrust seized the Rabbi, and he said to his son, " Women are light-minded; the Romans may tease her and then she will betray us.w So they stole away and hid themselves in a cave. Here the Lord interposed by a miracle, and created a carob-tree bearing fruit all the year round for their support, and opened a perennial spring for their refreshment.

To save their clothes they laid them aside except at prayers, and to protect their naked bodies from exposure they would at other times sit up to their necks in sand, absorbed in study. After they had passed twelve years thus in the cave, Elijah was sent to inform them that the Emperor was dead, and his decree powerless to touch them. On leaving the cave, they noticed some people plowing and sowing, when one of them exclaimed, " These folk neglect eternal things and trouble themselves with the things that are temporal.* As they fixed their eyes upon the place, fire came and burnt it up.

Then a Bath Kol was heard exclaiming, " What! are ye come forth to destroy the world I have made? Get back to your cave and hide you.* Thither accordingly they returned, and after they had stopped there twelve months longer, they remonstrated, pleading that even the judgment of the wicked in Gehenna lasted no longer than twelve months; upon which a Bath Kol was again heard from heaven, which said, "Come ye forth from your cave.8 Then they arose and obeyed it.

The young man did as he was advised, and gave the slave his freedom afterward. But ever after he was wont to exclaim: —. ^Wisdom resides with the aged, and understanding in length of days.". David, King of Israel, was once lying upon his couch and many thoughts were passing through his mind. " Of what use in this world is the spider? thought he; "it but increases the dust and dirt of the world, making places unsightly and causing great annoyance.8.

Then he thought of an insane man: —. " How unfortunate is such a being. I know that all things are ordained by God with reason and purpose, yet this is beyond my comprehension; why should men be born idiots, or grow insane. Then the mosquitoes annoyed him, and the king thought: —. " What can the mosquito be good for? why was it created in the world? It but disturbs our comfort, and the world profits not by its existence.".

Yet King David lived to discover that these very insects, and the very condition of life, the being of which he deplored, were ordained even to his own benefit.

Rabbi Yochanan said: — If, after the death of her husband, a woman should remain unmarried for ten years and then marry again, she will have no children. Rav Nachman added: — Provided she have not thought of marrying all the while; but if she had thought of marrying again, in that case she will have children. Rava once said to Rav Chisda's daughter (who bore children to Rava, though she did not marry him until ten years after her first husband's death), " The Rabbis have their doubts about you.M She replied, " I had always set my heart upon thee. • A woman once said to Rav Yoseph, " I waited ten years before I married again, and then I had children. " Daughter, said he, " do not bring the words of the wise into discredit. It is thou, not they, that are mistaken. Then the woman confessed that she had been a transgressor

Yoma, fol. 35, col. 2. The wife of Potiphar coaxed Joseph with loving words, but in vain. She then threatened to immure him in prison, but he replied (anticipating Ps. cxlvi. 7), " The Lord looseth the prisoners. Then she said, " I will bow thee down with distress; I will blind thine eyes.* He only answered (ibid., ver. 8), " The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind and raiseth them that are bowed down.8 She then tried to bribe him with a thousand talents of silver if he would comply with her request, but in vain. Ibid.

Abraham made a covenant with the people of the land, and when the angels presented themselves to him, he thought they were mere wayfarers, and he ran to meet them, purposing to make a banquet for them. This banquet he told Sarah to get prepared, just as she was kneading cakes. For this reason he did not offer them the cakes which she had made, but " ran to fetch a calf, tender and good." The calf in trepidation ran away from him and hid itself in the cave of Machpelah, into which he followed it. Here he found Adam and Eve fast asleep, with lamps burning over their couches, and the place pervaded with a sweet-smelling odor. Hence the fancy he took to the cave of Machpelah for a " possession of a burying-place. "

There are eight sects of Pharisees, viz, these: — (1.) The shoulder Pharisee, i. <?., he who, as it were, shoulders his good works to be seen of men. (2.) The time-gaining Pharisee, he who says, Wait a while; let me first perform this or that good work." (3.) The compounding Pharisee, i. e., he who says, " May my few sins be deducted from my many virtues, and thus atoned for" (or the bloodletting Pharisee, i. e., he who for fear lest he should look by chance on a woman shuts his eyes and wounds his face). (4.)

The Pharisee who so bends his back, stooping with his head toward the ground, that he wears the appearance of an inverted mortar. (5.) The Pharisee who proudly says, " Remains there a virtue which I ought to perform and have not?w (6.) The Pharisee who is so out of love for the reward which he hopes to earn by his observances. (7.) The Pharisee who is so from fear lest he should expose himself to punishment. (8.) The Pharisee who is born so. Avoth d'Rab.

Shechem, the son of Hamor, assembled girls together playing on tambourines outside the tent of Dinah, and when she " went out to see them," he carried her off, and she bare him Osenath. The sons of Jacob wished to kill her, lest the people of the land should begin to talk scandal of the house of their father. Jacob, however, engraved the holy Name on a metal plate, suspended it upon her neck, and sent her away. All this being observed before the Holy One — blessed be He! — the angel Michael was sent down, who led her to Egypt, into the house of Potipherah; for Osenath was worthy to become the wife of Joseph. Pirke d'Rab.

Once on a time, as the Rabbis relate, the wicked Government sent two officers to the wise men of Israel, saying, " Teach us your law.w This being put into their hands, three times over they perused it; and when about to leave they returned it, remarking, " We have carefully studied your law, and find it equitable save in one particular. You say: When the ox of an Israelite gores to death the ox of an alien, its owner is not liable to make compensation; but if the ox of an alien gore to death the ox of an Israelite, its owner must make full amends for the loss of the animal; whether it be the first or second time that the ox has so killed another (in which case an Israelite would have to pay to another Israelite only half the value of the loss), or the third time (when he would be fined to the full extent of his neighbor's loss). Either Neighbor" (in Bxod. xxi. 35, for such the word signifies in the original Hebrew,

collected from all parts of the world; during the second it was made into a lump; during the third his limbs were formed; during the fourth his body was animated; during the fifth he stood upon his legs; during the sixth he gave names to the animals; during the seventh he associated with Eve; during the eighth Cain and a twin sister were born (Abel and his twin sister were born after the Fall, says the Tosephoth); during the ninth Adam was ordered not to eat of the forbidden tree; during the tenth he fell, during the eleventh he was judged; and during the twelfth he was ejected from paradise; as it is said (Ps. xlix. 13, A. V. 12), " Man (Adam) abode not one night in his dignity.8

Caesar once said to Rabbi Tanchum, " Come, now, let us be one people.® "Very well,® said Rabbi Tanchum, "only we, being circumcised, cannot possibly become like you; if, however, ye become circumcised we shall be alike in that regard anyhow, and so be as one people.® The Emperor said, "Thou hast reasonably answered, but the Roman law is, that he who nonpulses his ruler and puts him to silence shall be cast to the lions.® The word was no sooner uttered than the Rabbi was thrown into the den, but the

The Rabbis have taught: — Forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot did not fall on the right, and the crimson band did not turn white; the light in the west did not burn, and the gates of the Temple opened of themselves, so that Rabbi Yochanan ben Zacchai rebuked them, and said, "0 Temple! Temple! why art thou dismayed? I know thy end will be that thou shalt be destroyed, for Zachariah the son of Iddo has already predicted respecting thee (Zech. xi. 1), Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. '

Rabbi Levi says, " When Solomon introduced the ark into the Temple, all the woodwork thereof freshened with sap and began to yield fruit, as it is said (Ps. xcii. 13), < Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.' And thus it continued to bear fruit, which abundantly supplied the juveniles of the priestly caste till the time of Manasseh; but he, by introducing an image into the Temple, caused the Shechinah to depart and the fruit to wither; as it is said (Nah. i. 4), ( And the flower of Lebanon languisheth.

" And it came to pass that when Abram was come into Egypt8 (Gen. xii. 14). And where was Sarah? He confined her in a chest, into which he locked her, lest any one should gaze on her beauty. When he came to the receipt of custom, he was summoned to open the chest, but declined, and offered payment of the duty. The officers said, " Thou carriest garments; and he offered duty for garments. " Nay, it is gold thou carriest; 8 and he offered the impost laid on gold. Then they said, " It is costly silks, belike pearls, thou concealest; 8 and he offered the custom on such articles. At length the Egyptian officers insisted, and he opened the box. And when he did so, all the land of

Rav Cahana was once selling ladies' baskets when he was exposed to the trial of a sinful temptation. He pleaded with his tempter to let him off and he promised to return, but instead of doing so he went up to the roof of the house and threw himself down headlong. Before he reached the ground, however, Elijah came and caught him, and reproached him, as he caught him up, with having brought him a distance of four hundred miles to save him from an act of willful self-destruction. The Rabbi told him that it was his poverty which had given to the temptation the power of seduction. Thereupon Elijah gave him a vessel full of gold denarii and departed.

Apropos to the part the frog was conceived to play or symbolize in the Jewish conception of the mode and ministry of Divine judgment, we quote the following: — " We are told that Samuel once saw a frog carrying a scorpion on its back across a river, upon the opposite bank of which a man stood waiting ready to be stung. The sting proving fatal, so that the man died; upon which Samuel exclaimed, <Lord, they wait for Thy judgments this day: for all are Thy servants.* (Ps. cxix. 91.)w (Nedarim, fol. 41, col. 1.)

The fire from which Abraham is here said to be delivered may simply refer to his deliverance by the hand of God from Ur of the Chaldees; Ur meaning ^fire,** and being the name of a place celebrated for fire worship. The Midrash (p. 20) says, "When the wicked Nimrod cast Abraham into the furnace, Gabriel said, ( Lord of the universe! permit me to deliver this holy one from the fire! ' But the Lord made answer, ( I am the One Supreme in my world, and he is supreme in his; it is fitting therefore that the Supreme should rescue the supreme. >