Midrash Tanchuma Reader

Another interpretation (of Genesis 8:1): "Then God remembered Noah." It is written (Proverbs 12:10): "A righteous one knows the soul of his beast." The Righteous One of the world knows even the soul of His beast, even when He is angry. The attributes of the Holy One, blessed be He, are not like the attribute of flesh and blood. The attribute of flesh and blood: when a province rebels against him, he sends out his legions and destroys it, and he makes the good and the wicked equal as one, and there is no one there to say, "So-and-so is upright, leave him be" — rather they kill them all. But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not so. Rather, the whole generation provokes Him, and He is angry with them, yet there is but a single righteous one there, and He saves him. This is the meaning of "A righteous one knows the soul of his beast." And so it says (Nahum 1:7): "The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him." "But the compassion of the wicked is cruel" (Proverbs 12:10) — these are the generation of the flood, who were cruel. Our Rabbis said: At the hour when the Holy One, blessed be He, brought up the deep, and they saw the fountains rising over them, what did they do? They had many children, and each and every one would take his child and set him upon the deep, and the waters kept rising. This is the meaning of "But the compassion of the wicked is cruel." [And whence that they did so?] For Job said of them (Job 24:20): "The womb forgets him, the worm feeds sweetly upon him, he is no longer remembered" — his womb, that is, his children. And what did the Holy One, blessed be He, do to them? He brought down upon them a flood from above and shattered them, as it is said (Job 24:20): "And unrighteousness is broken like a tree." Rabbi Berekhyah said: They were exceedingly hard, and they were of great stature, and had He not exacted punishment upon them from above, the waters could not have prevailed against them. For so Job said (Job 22:20): "Surely our adversaries are cut off, and their remnant the fire has consumed." What is the meaning of this? Since the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that they had not died in the depths below, He brought down upon them fire from above and burned them, as it is said, "Surely our adversaries are cut off," and so forth. And not only that, but He turned the bird and the beast and the wild animal against them, and they made them perish, as it is said (Genesis 7:21): "And all flesh perished," and so forth. When they saw themselves that they were lost, they sought to overturn the ark. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He surrounded the ark with lions, and they devoured them, as it is said (Genesis 7:16): "And the Lord shut him in." What is the meaning of "shut in"? As in the matter of which it is said (Daniel 6:23): "My God sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions."

There is a story about Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, who was a child of the palace; and his father was attached to the government and to the affairs of the army commanders. In time, Rabbi Eliezer's father went to another place. When he sensed that they were coming, he said to his sons: Let us arise and flee from before them. At once he called his witnesses and his servants. He said: Bring me the cattle and the camels. They loaded the goods upon the cattle, and Hyrcanus and his sons fled. But Rabbi Eliezer did not go with his father; rather he fled to Jerusalem. And he took in his hand neither a loaf nor a coin nor anything at all, but entered Jerusalem like a poor man. And he saw Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai sitting and teaching Torah, with the students sitting before him at the lesson. When they finished the lesson, he would tell them haggadah, and afterward he would say mishnah. He entered and sat beside Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai. He spent two or three weeks before him, and he came to speak before the students, and they would smell the foul odor of his mouth, and they would conceal it and say nothing. Again he came to speak, and they would conceal it and say nothing. Again he came to speak, and they would conceal it and say nothing. Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai knew that the odor of his mouth did not speak of something bad that was within his mouth, but rather came from hunger, for he was not eating anything. Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai said to the students: By your lives, examine the matter and find out what is the affair of this student—whether he is hungry, and what he eats. And they went about all Jerusalem and asked the innkeepers: Is there a haver lodging here? They said to them: No. They came to a certain woman. They said to her: Is there a haver lodging here? She said to them: Yes. Does he have anything here? She said to them: He has one sack. They said to her: Show it to us. At once she brought it before them. They opened it and found in it dust, for he would put his head into it and suck as upon a wineskin. They went and told Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai, and he was amazed at the matter, and he saw the righteousness that was in the hand of Rabbi Eliezer, that he did not demand of any man, saying, Give me something. At that hour he set aside much money for him, so that he might eat good foods, as he had been accustomed to in his father's house, where he would eat and drink well, until the odor of his mouth was healed. He spent before Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai one, two, and three years, until Rabbi Eliezer's father returned to his place. When he came to his place and remained there a month and two months and Rabbi Eliezer his son did not come, it grieved him to say that he had abandoned him and gone off to Jerusalem. And the brothers of Rabbi Eliezer said to their father: See what Eliezer your son has done—he abandoned you and went off to Jerusalem to eat fattened delicacies, while you carried yourself away from your house and went after him. Were it a bad matter, he would not leap to take an inheritance. And how great is the difference between us and your son! We gave our lives for you and did not abandon you, but he did not come to see your distress; and now, if he hears that some matter has befallen you, he is destined to come to us and share with us. At that hour he said to them: In such-and-such a manner he shall inherit nothing from me. They said to him: When you die, you remove him. He said to them: Call me a tablet. They said to him: It will be of no use. There is in Jerusalem a certain nasi, and his name is Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai, and he supports him; and when you die, he will surely come, and he will say, Who says that his father removed him? And we shall bring out the writing, and he will say, It is a forgery—you made it, and I do not believe it—until we come to a court of law. He said to them: Since you have said this before me, even though Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai praises him, I will remove him. At that hour his sons mounted him upon a carriage, and he entered Jerusalem on the eve of the Sabbath. He said: I will not remove him except on the Sabbath in the house of study, when? At the hour when all the congregation assembles. He entered to sit in the house of study, and all Israel entered according to their custom to hear the homily that Rabbi Eliezer was expounding before the multitude upon the chair, with the hazzan standing before him. His father saw him wrapped in his prayer-shawl with tefillin upon his head. At once he saw—for he had supposed that he had gone off to evil ways. When he saw him sitting upon his chair and expounding, Hyrcanus stood upon the bench and said before the people of Jerusalem: I did not come up to Jerusalem except to excommunicate you, Eliezer my son, and also to remove you from the inheritance; now behold, I give you two portions more than your brothers. And upon what matter was Rabbi Eliezer expounding at that hour? Our Rabbis said: On this matter (Genesis 14:1), "And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel." Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus opened: This is as Scripture says (Psalms 37:15), "Their sword shall enter into their own heart"—all that matter which is at the head of the parashah.

It is written (Job 41:4): "I will not keep silent concerning his boastings, nor his mighty word, nor the grace of his array." The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Lest people say, "We too may speak with the Holy One, blessed be He, just as Abraham spoke, and He keeps silent toward us," the Holy One, blessed be He, said: No — "I will not keep silent concerning his boastings"; rather, to Abraham alone do I keep silent. Why? Because he kept silent toward Me, I too keep silent toward him. When did Abraham keep silent? When I said to him, "For in Isaac shall seed be called to you" (Genesis 21:12), and afterward I said to him, "Take now your son" (Genesis 22:2), and he kept silent toward Me, as it is said, "But I am like a deaf man, I hear not" (Psalms 38:14). I too will keep silent toward him. And even though he spoke harsh things, as it is said, "nor his mighty word" (Job 41:4), yet "the grace of his array" was sweet to Me. And what mighty things did he speak? See what is written: "And Abraham drew near and said, 'Will You indeed sweep away?'" (Genesis 18:23). Abraham said before the Holy One, blessed be He: Master of the universe, "Far be it from You," and so forth — lest those who come into the world say, "Such is His craft, that He destroys the generations with the measure of cruelty. He destroyed the generation of Enosh, and the generation of the Flood, and the generation of the Dispersion; He does not abandon His craft." [Therefore Abraham said,] "Far be it from You." The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Thus have you said. Come and see, and I will cause to pass before you all the generations that I destroyed, and I will show you that I did not exact more than their due in punishment from them. And if it should enter your mind that I did not act fittingly, teach Me, and I will do so, as it is said, "What I see not, teach You me; if I have done iniquity, I will do so no more" (Job 34:32) — and I will do so no more. They said before Him: Master of the universe, peace to You; You do not pervert judgment upon any creature, as it is said, "Therefore, you men of understanding, hearken to me: far be it from God that He should do wickedness, and from the Almighty that He should commit iniquity" (Job 34:10); rather, "For the work of a man He repays him," and so forth (Job 34:11). Therefore he says, "Far be it from You," and so forth.

(Genesis 25:1:) "And Abraham added and took a wife." This is what Scripture says (Job 8:7): "Though your beginning was small, yet your end shall greatly increase." Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said in the name of Rabbi Eleazar ha-Kappar: From here you learn that the addition of the Holy One, blessed be He, is greater than the original. Abraham at first sired none but Isaac; when the Holy One, blessed be He, added for him, He added for him still more, as it is said (Genesis 25:2): "And she bore him." So too you find with the first man: when she bore Cain, she bore, and afterward "she added to bear" (Genesis 4:2). And so too you find with Rachel: she bore Joseph and said, "May the LORD add to me another son" (Genesis 30:24); He added for her Benjamin and his twin sister. How do we know this? "This is a son for you" is not written here, but rather "For this also is a son for you" (Genesis 35:17). And so too you find with King Hezekiah: all the days of his reign were fourteen years, and when the Holy One, blessed be He, added for him, He added for him fifteen years: "Behold, I will add to your days fifteen years" (Isaiah 38:5). And when the prophets saw that the addition of the Holy One, blessed be He, was greater than the original, they began to bless Israel with addition. Moses said, "May the LORD, the God of your fathers, add to you a thousand times as many as you are" (Deuteronomy 1:11). David said, "May the LORD add to you" (Psalms 115:14). Also in the world to come the Holy One, blessed be He, acquires His people with addition, as it is said (Isaiah 11:11): "And it shall come to pass on that day that the LORD will add His hand a second time."

"And now, please take up your implements" (Genesis 27:3). Rabbi Yitzchak Nappacha (the Smith) said: "[Your implements]" — this is the kingdom of Babylon, as it is said, "And the Lord gave into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah, and a portion of the implements of the House of God" (Daniel 1:2). "Your quiver (telyekha)" — this is [the kingdom of] Media, as it is said, "And they hanged (talu) him and his sons upon the tree" (Esther 9:25). "And your bow" — this is the kingdom of Greece, as it is said, "For I have bent Judah for Me as a bow" (Zechariah 9:13). "[And go out to the field — this is the kingdom of Edom]," as it is said, "to the land of Seir, the field of Edom" (Genesis 32:4).

(Gen. 29:31:) "And the LORD saw that Leah was hated." This is what Scripture says (Ps. 145:14): "The LORD upholds all who fall, and raises up all who are bowed down." (It does not say "all who stand," but "all who are bowed down," and even the wicked He raises up.) R. Hiyya said: The measure of the Holy One, blessed be He, is not like the measure of flesh and blood. The measure of flesh and blood is this: a man has a wealthy friend, and he clings to him and longs for him; but once his hand has sunk and he has become poor, the friend mocks him. The Holy One, blessed be He, however, is not so. As soon as He sees a man whose hand has sunk, He gives him a hand and raises him up, as it is said, "The LORD upholds all who fall." It does not say "all who stand," but "all who fall." "And raises up all who are bowed down." You might say that He raises up even the wicked, should they come to fall — no, as it is said (Ps. 6:13 [12]): "There the workers of iniquity have fallen; they are thrust down and cannot rise." Once they have fallen, they have no standing. Why? Because it is said (Ps. 35:5): "Like chaff before the wind, and the angel of the LORD thrusting them." But the righteous — "the LORD upholds." When the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that Leah was hated, He said: How shall I make her beloved before her husband? Behold, I will raise her up and give her children first, so that she will be beloved before her husband. Therefore, "And the LORD saw that Leah was hated." And so it says (1 Chron. 2:18): "And Caleb the son of Hezron begot children of Azubah his wife, and of Jerioth; and these were her sons: Jesher, and Shobab, and Ardon." R. Berekhyah said: She was his wife. And why was she called Azubah? Because she was forsaken (azuvah) and ugly. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Behold, I will give her children so that she will become comely through them, as it is said, "And these were her sons: Jesher, and Shobab, and Ardon." Therefore it is said, "The LORD upholds all who fall, and raises up all who are bowed down."

[(Genesis 38:1:) "And Judah went down [from his brothers, and turned aside to a certain Adullamite]."] This is what the verse says (Micah 1:15): "I will yet bring to you one who shall dispossess you, [O inhabitant of Mareshah; to Adullam shall come the glory of Israel]." R. Judah and R. Nehemiah [differed]. One said: The tribes married their sisters, as it is said (Genesis 37:35): "And all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him." And how many daughters were there? Rather, they were their twin sisters, for [the mother] would bear twins together with [each son], and he would take her [as a wife]. And thus it says regarding Benjamin (Genesis 35:17): "for this too is a son for you." "For this is a son for you" is not stated, but rather "for this too" — that his mother bore a twin sister along with him. Hence (ibid. 37:35): "And all his sons and all his daughters [arose]." From here you learn that they married their sisters. And R. Nehemiah upholds [the verse by interpreting] "his daughters" as his daughters-in-law, for a man's son-in-law is like his son and his daughter-in-law like his daughter, and a man does not refrain from calling his daughter-in-law his daughter. Our Rabbis said: Judah, who was the eldest in his father's house, took a Canaanite woman, as it is written (Genesis 38:2): "And Judah saw there [the daughter of a certain Canaanite]." And the prophet proclaims (Micah 1:15): "To Adullam shall come the (Holy One) [glory] of Israel." Hence (Genesis 38:1): "And Judah went down [from his brothers] and turned aside to a certain Adullamite."

(Gen. 42:3:) "AND JOSEPH'S TEN BROTHERS WENT DOWN." Jacob said to them: I beg of you, do not enter by a single gate, on account of the evil eye. And so they did. When they entered, they did not all enter as one, but each and every one by himself. What did Joseph do? He stationed guards at the entrance to the gates of Egypt. He said: Whoever enters, let his name and his father's name be written down by you, and you are to bring me their names. And when the sons of Jacob entered, each and every one by himself, he (the guard) would say: What is your name? And he would say to him: Reuben son of Jacob. And so each and every one of them; he would write down his name and his father's name. And they brought the written records to Joseph. He said to them: Go and bring them. They went and found them in the market of the harlots, and they brought them to Joseph. Immediately Joseph recognized them, as it is said (Gen. 42:8): "AND JOSEPH RECOGNIZED HIS BROTHERS." He began to recall the dreams, as it is said (Gen. 42:9): "AND JOSEPH REMEMBERED THE DREAMS THAT HE HAD DREAMED ABOUT THEM." (Gen. 42:7:) "AND HE MADE HIMSELF A STRANGER TO THEM AND SPOKE HARSHLY WITH THEM." He began to be harsh with them and said to them: From where have you come? When they said: From the land of Canaan, he said to Simeon and to Levi: Are you accustomed to plundering people, just as you did in Shechem? This is the meaning of "AND HE SPOKE HARSHLY WITH THEM."

[And he sent Judah.] Scripture says, "Then the jealousy of Ephraim shall depart" (Isaiah 11:13). For our father Jacob supposed that Judah had killed Joseph, because he had brought him the tunic, as it is said, "And he recognized it and said, 'My son's tunic! An evil beast has devoured him'" (Genesis 37:33). And "an evil beast" is nothing but a lion. And Jacob would say to him, "You tore him to pieces, and you are destined to tear his brother to pieces; you tore him to pieces only out of jealousy." Immediately, "And Jacob rent his garments," etc. (ibid. 34).

Another interpretation (of Gen. 49:1): THEN JACOB CALLED HIS SONS. This is what Scripture says (in Ps. 57:3 [2]): I WILL CALL TO GOD MOST HIGH, TO THE GOD WHO BRINGS THINGS TO COMPLETION FOR ME. Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said: Three things the earthly court decreed, and the Holy One, blessed be He, concurred with them. These are they:

[(Exodus 3:1:) NOW MOSES WAS TENDING THE FLOCK.] This is what Scripture says (in Psalms 11:4): THE LORD IS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE.... Rabbi Samuel bar Nahman said: Until the Temple was destroyed, the Divine Presence (Shekhinah) was set in the Temple, as it is said: THE LORD IS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE; but once the Temple was destroyed, (the same verse continues:) THE LORD'S THRONE IS IN THE HEAVENS, He removed His Divine Presence to the heavens. Rabbi Eleazar ben Pedat said: Whether destroyed or not destroyed, the Divine Presence does not stir from its place, as it is said: THE LORD IS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE. And from where? As it is said (in I Kings 9:3): AND MY EYES AND MY HEART SHALL BE THERE ALL THE DAYS. And so it says (in Psalms 3:5): WITH MY VOICE I CALL UNTO THE LORD, AND HE ANSWERS ME FROM HIS HOLY MOUNTAIN, SELAH, for even as a mountain it remains in its holiness. Rabbi Eleazar ben Pedat said: See what is written (in Ezra 1:3): AND LET HIM BUILD THE HOUSE OF THE LORD, THE GOD OF ISRAEL, HE IS THE GOD WHO IS IN JERUSALEM; He does not stir from there. Rabbi Aha said: Never does the Divine Presence stir from the Western Wall of the Temple, as it is said (in Song of Songs 2:9): BEHOLD, HE STANDS BEHIND OUR WALL. Thus, THE LORD IS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE. Rabbi Yannai said: Even though they said, THE LORD IS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE, THE LORD'S THRONE IS IN THE HEAVENS, (the verse continues:) HIS EYES BEHOLD, HIS EYELIDS TEST THE CHILDREN OF MAN (Psalms 11:4). To what is the matter comparable? To a king who had an orchard, and he brought the laborers into it; and at the gate of the orchard there was one storehouse full of all good things. The king said: Whoever does his work with all his soul shall take his reward from here, and whoever does not do his work with all his soul, I shall sit within my palace and judge him. Who is this king? This is the King of the kings of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He. And what is this orchard? This is this world. The Holy One, blessed be He, placed the children of man within it, that they should keep the Torah; and He made a condition with them and said to them: Whoever truly keeps the Torah, behold the Garden of Eden is before him; and whoever does not truly keep the Torah, behold Gehinnom is before him. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Even though I appeared to remove My Divine Presence from the Temple, yet MY EYES BEHOLD whom He tests. THE LORD, THE RIGHTEOUS HE TESTS. And why does He not test the wicked? Rabbi Yannai said: This flax worker, when he is beating and sees that the flax is good, beats it much; but when he sees that it is not good, he does not beat upon it, lest it break apart. Therefore, HIS EYES BEHOLD, HIS EYELIDS TEST THE CHILDREN OF MAN. [And whom does He test? The righteous, as it is said (in the same, verse 5):] THE LORD TESTS THE RIGHTEOUS.

Another interpretation: Just as the expounder comes and expounds, and the amora (the one who speaks out) speaks before him, so too "You shall speak everything that I command you, and Aaron your brother shall speak to Pharaoh" (Exodus 7:2). "They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh" etc. (Exodus 6:27). The Holy One, blessed be He, said: In this world I exacted retribution from Egypt through ten plagues, and in the world to come thus will I exact retribution from Gog, as it is said, "And I will enter into judgment with him with pestilence and with blood; and torrential rain and hailstones, fire and brimstone" etc. (Ezekiel 38:22).

[(Exodus 12:2:) "THIS NEW MOON" (i.e., "THIS MONTH").] Rabbi Samuel bar Abba said: Every new moon that is born from the sixth hour [of the day] and earlier, the eye has the power to see it; from the sixth hour and later, the eye does not have the power to see it. And that new moon, concerning which the Holy One, blessed be He, spoke to Moses, was born from the sixth hour and later, and the eye did not have the power to see it. So the Holy One, blessed be He, showed it to him with His finger, and said to him: "This new moon."

Another interpretation: AND GOD DID NOT LEAD THEM (Exodus 13:17) — He did not lead them according to the way of all the earth. How so? It is the way of the earth that the servant carries his master; would his master carry him? The Holy One, blessed be He, did not behave with them in this way. Rather: AND IN THE WILDERNESS, WHERE YOU SAW HOW THE LORD YOUR GOD CARRIED YOU, and so forth (Deuteronomy 1:31). And it says: AND I CARRIED YOU ON EAGLES' WINGS, and so forth (Exodus 19:4). It is the way of the earth that the servant washes his master, but here the Holy One, blessed be He, washed us, as it is said: AND I WASHED YOU WITH WATER (Ezekiel 16:9). It is the way of the earth that the servant clothes his master, but here the Holy One, blessed be He, clothes them, as it is said: AND I CLOTHED YOU WITH EMBROIDERED CLOTH (ibid., verse 10). It is the way of the earth that the servant puts shoes on his master, but here: AND I SHOD YOU WITH TACHASH LEATHER (ibid.). It is the way of the earth that the servant gives light to his master, but here the Holy One, blessed be He, gives light to Israel, as it is said: AND THE LORD WENT BEFORE THEM, and so forth (Exodus 13:21). Thus, AND GOD DID NOT LEAD THEM according to the way of all the earth. And why all this? BECAUSE IT WAS NEAR (Exodus 13:17) — for they are near to the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said: AND HE HAS RAISED UP A HORN FOR HIS PEOPLE, [A PRAISE FOR ALL HIS FAITHFUL ONES,] FOR THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, A PEOPLE NEAR TO HIM (Psalms 148:14).

(Exodus 19:1:) IN THE THIRD MONTH, etc. This is what Scripture said (Ecclesiastes 10:18): THROUGH SLOTHFULNESS THE ROOFBEAM SINKS, <AND THROUGH LAZINESS OF HANDS THE HOUSE LEAKS>. What causes this woman to flow with blood? Because she is slothful about examining herself as to whether she is unclean or not. For our Rabbis taught: Every hand that examines frequently among women, behold, this is praiseworthy; but among men, let it be cut off. There was an incident with a maidservant of Rabban Gamliel, who was moving all the cups and jugs from house to house, and she would examine herself at each and every jug. At the last one she examined herself and was found to be unclean. And Rabban Gamliel was afraid, saying: Perhaps the pure things have become unclean! He said to her: Did you not examine yourself? She said to him: By your life, my master, I was examining myself between each and every jug, and at the last one I examined myself and was found to be unclean. Rabban Gamliel said: Had this woman been slothful, all the pure things would already have become unclean. (Ecclesiastes 10:18:) THROUGH SLOTHFULNESS THE ROOFBEAM SINKS. Behold, because this woman is slothful she flows with blood. And "the roofbeam" (ha-meqareh) can only mean blood, as it is said (Leviticus 20:18): AND HE HAS UNCOVERED HER FOUNTAIN (meqorah). (Ecclesiastes 10:18, continued:) AND THROUGH LAZINESS OF HANDS <THE HOUSE> LEAKS. (Leviticus 15:25:) AND WHEN A WOMAN HAS A FLOW OF HER BLOOD <FOR MANY DAYS>, etc.

(Exodus 23:20) "Behold, I am sending an angel etc." This is what Scripture says (Jeremiah 3:19): "And I said, How would I set you among the children etc." Rabbi Eleazar ben Pedat says: What is this, "I would set you"? It had arisen in my mind that there should be in the world only I and you. How did you act toward Me so as to bring the nations of the world in among you? And this expression is nothing but an expression of separation, "And he set apart for himself flocks etc." (Genesis 30:40). Rabbi Hama bar Hanina said: What is "I would set you"? There was a great love between Me and you. How did you act so that I should hate you? "How would I set you among the children" — this expression is nothing but an expression of hatred, as it is said, "And I will put enmity" (Genesis 3:15). Another interpretation: "How would I set you among the children." Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said: I was advocating in your defense. You acted toward Me so that I should accuse you and find you liable, and this expression is nothing but an expression of liability, as it is said, "If a ransom is laid upon him" (Exodus 21:30). Another interpretation: "How would I set you among the children." Rabbi Berekhyah the Priest said: You were as beloved to Me as a man who has a single field, and he manures it and hoes it and weeds it — so were you beloved to Me. You acted toward Me so as to make you ownerless, and this expression is nothing but an expression of ownerlessness, as it is said, "And I will make it a waste etc." (Isaiah 5:6). "And give you a desirable land" (Jeremiah 3:19) — a land that the great ones of the world desired. Abraham said to the sons of Heth, "Give me a burial holding" (Genesis 23:4). The Holy One too endeared it before Isaac, as it is said, "Sojourn in this land etc." (Genesis 26:3). Jacob said, "In my grave which I dug for myself" (Genesis 50:5) — behold, a desirable land. "A heritage of beauty" (Jeremiah 3:19). What is "a heritage of beauty" (nahalat tzevi)? Just as with this deer (tzevi), one slaughters it and strips off its hide, and they seek to return the flesh into the hide and it does not hold it, so the Land of Israel does not hold its produce. What is written? "And the oxen and the young asses that till the ground shall eat seasoned fodder, which has been winnowed with shovel and with fork" (Isaiah 30:24). At first they would winnow with the shovel, and afterward with the fork. Why? Because the grain was more than the straw, and even so there was produce in the winnowed straw. From where? As it is said, "They shall eat seasoned fodder, which has been winnowed with shovel and with fork" — in the mixtures there was of the produce. Behold, a desirable land, a heritage of beauty — a land that did not hold its produce, a land that was good and that all the kings of the world desired. It is written, "The king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai which is beside Bethel, one" (Joshua 12:9). And there is only three mil between Jericho and Ai, yet it says, "the king of Jericho." Rather, anyone who acquired outside the Land and did not acquire in the Land of Israel was not called a king. Why? Because they desired the Land of Israel. Rabbi Johanan said: See what is written, "And I saw among the spoil a mantle of Shinar" (Joshua 7:21) — a Babylonian purple robe which the king of Babylon wore and ruled in Jericho. Behold, a heritage of beauty of the nations. And it says, "You shall call Me, My Father" (Jeremiah 3:19). Just as this father is bound to provide for the delights of his daughter, so was I raining down for you, "and the layer of dew went up etc." (Exodus 16:14). "Surely, as a woman betrays her companion" (Jeremiah 3:20). Rabbi Judah bar Simon said: Would that it were like a betraying woman! This woman who has a companion — she feeds him and gives him drink, and she loves him; once his hand grows short, she leaves him and goes off on her own. "Surely, as a woman betrays her companion" — I did not do thus to you. The manna was coming down for you, and the well rising up; I did not deprive you of a thing when you betrayed Me. Behold, I am giving you an angel to watch over you, "Behold, I am sending you an angel." When you were worthy and received the Torah, I Myself was going before you; but now that you have become liable, behold, I am sending an angel before you. [Another interpretation.] The Holy One said to Moses: I am sending before you, but not before them. He said: If You are sending before me, I do not want it. But Joshua saw the angel and fell on his face. What did he say to him? "Are you for us or for our adversaries?" (Joshua 5:13). When he said to him "for us," the angel cried out from beneath the nails of his feet, "And he said, No, for I am the captain of the host of the LORD; now I have come" (Joshua 5:14) — behold, two times I came to give Israel its inheritance. I am the one who came in the days of Moses your master, and he rejected me; now I have come. "And Joshua fell on his face" (ibid.) — he saw him and fell on his face; but Moses saw and rejected him. The Holy One said, "Behold, I am sending an angel before you" — to you and to everyone who observes the Torah like you. Resh Lakish said: It is written, "He will cover you with His pinion, and under His wings you will take refuge" (Psalms 91:4) — everyone who observes the Torah: "His truth is a shield and buckler" (ibid.). Therefore, "to guard you on the way etc." (Exodus 23:20).

"And this is the thing that you shall do to them" etc. (Exodus 29:1). "Take one young bull" — through purchase and not from robbery — "and two rams" (ibid.): a ram from here and a ram from there, and the bull in the middle. Why three against three? Corresponding to the three adornments of the world. The bull corresponds to Abraham: "And Abraham ran to the herd" (Genesis 18:7). "And two [unblemished] rams" (Exodus, ibid.) correspond to Isaac and Jacob. "And unleavened bread" (Exodus 29:2): by their merit Abram baked the bread. Rabbi Chiyya bar Abba said: When the offerings were being brought near, a se'ah of Arbel produce would yield a se'ah of fine flour, a se'ah of meal, a se'ah of coarse flour, a se'ah of bran, a se'ah of husks, a se'ah of cheese-like grain; but now a person crushes a se'ah of wheat to grind, and he brings out only what he crushes and a little more. Why? Because the showbread was abolished. And how good were the offerings that were brought near upon the altar for them, for whatever was brought near of its kind would bless its kind. Rabbi Chiyya bar Abba said: Even the very foundation of the altar was made only for the atonement of Israel. Why is its name called mizbe'ach (altar)? Mem, for it forgives (mochel) the iniquities of Israel; zayin, for it is a good remembrance (zikaron) for Israel; bet, for it is a blessing (berachah) for Israel; chet, for it is life (chayyim) for Israel. The unleavened bread and the showbread would bless the bread, and the first-fruits would bless the fruits of the tree. It happened with Rabbi Yonatan ben Elazar, who was sitting under a fig tree, and the fig tree was full of beautiful figs. Dew came down and the figs drew in honey, and the wind kneaded them in the dust. A goat came and was dripping milk into the honey. He called the disciples and said to them: Come and see a sample resembling the World to Come. And all this — why? Because the offerings were being brought near. It happened with a certain scribe who would go up to Jerusalem every single year, and the people of Jerusalem recognized that he was great in Torah. They said to him: Take fifty gold pieces every year and dwell among us. He said to them: I have one vine, and it is more beautiful to me than all of them, and it produces for me three harvests every year, and six hundred barrels it produces every year — the first produces three hundred, and the second two hundred, and the third one hundred — and I sell them for very high prices. And all this praise belongs to Jerusalem, because of the libation of wine that they would offer. Once it was abolished, all these benefits were withheld. And you find that once Israel was exiled to Babylon, Ezra would say to them: Go up to the Land of Israel; but they did not want to. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: When you offered the showbread, you would sow little and bring in much, but now you have sown much and bring in little — "you eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there is not enough to become drunk" (Haggai 1:6) — since the libation of wine was abolished. "You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm" (ibid.) — since the priestly garments were abolished. The prophet said: "Though the fig tree shall not blossom" (Habakkuk 3:17) — since they abolished the first-fruits. "And there is no produce on the vines" (ibid.) — since they abolished the libations. "The yield of the olive fails" (ibid.) — since the olive oil for the light was abolished. "And the fields yield no food" (ibid.) — what is u-shedemot? "And the beasts of the field" (u-shedei behemot) — since they abolished the firstlings. "The flock is cut off from the fold" (ibid.) — since they abolished the daily offerings. "And there are no cattle in the stalls" (ibid.) — since they abolished the bulls. Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: From the day the Temple was destroyed, there is no day that does not have a curse in it, as it is said: "And God is angry every day" (Psalms 7:12). But in the World to Come the Holy One, blessed be He, restores the blessings that He used to bestow, as it is said: "But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are at hand to come" (Ezekiel 36:8).

[(Exodus 31:18:) AND HE GAVE TO MOSES.] This is what Scripture said (Proverbs 2:6): FOR THE LORD GIVES WISDOM; [FROM HIS MOUTH COME KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. Great is wisdom, and greater than it are knowledge and understanding. FOR THE LORD GIVES WISDOM,] but to the one whom He loves He gives, [from His mouth,] knowledge and understanding. Rabbi Isaac said: To what is the matter comparable? To a king who had a son, and he would come from the schoolhouse. He found a serving-dish before his father. His father took a piece and gave it to him. What did his son do? He said to him: I want only what is in your mouth. Because he cherished him, he gave him from within his mouth. [Thus] (Proverbs 2:6): FOR THE LORD GIVES WISDOM, but to the one whom He loves, from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. As a gift the Holy One, blessed be He, gave the Torah to Israel: (Exodus 31:18) AND HE GAVE TO MOSES.

Our masters said: What is written above on the matter? "And he made the veil" (Exodus 36:35). Our masters said: The veil's thickness was a handbreadth, and it was woven upon seventy-two heddle-threads, and upon each and every strand were twenty-four threads. Its length was forty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits, and there was no knot in it. And they would make two of them each and every year, and three hundred priests would immerse it. And how would they immerse it? All the priests would go up and immerse it, and they would go up and spread it out upon the rampart. And once Moses had made the veil, which was set before the Ark, afterward he told Bezalel to make the Ark.

(Lev. 4:2:) WHEN A SOUL SINS. This is what Scripture says (in Prov. 19:2): ALSO, WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE A SOUL IS NOT GOOD, [AND ONE WHO HASTENS WITH HIS FEET IS A SINNER]. Whoever sins, even by mistake, it is not a good sign for him. How so? There were two shops before him, one belonging to a star-worshiper and one belonging to an Israelite. He entered the one belonging to the star-worshiper. Since he entered deliberately, he is called a sinner, as it is stated (in Prov. 19:2): AND ONE WHO HASTENS WITH HIS FEET IS A SINNER.

(Leviticus 7:11:) "And this is the law of the sacrifice of the peace offerings." [Peace offerings are great] because they make peace between Israel and their Father in Heaven. R. Elazar haKappar says: Peace is great, for even when Israel worships idols, yet they form a single fellowship, the attribute of justice does not strike them, as it is said (Hosea 4:17): "Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone." R. Levi said: Peace is great, for the Priestly Blessing concludes with nothing but peace, as it is said (Numbers 6:26): "and grant you peace." R. Shimon ben Gamliel said: Peace is great, for the Holy One, blessed be He, wrote things in the Torah that never were, only for the sake of peace. These are they:

"And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying: Speak to the children of Israel, saying: These are the living creatures that you may eat" and so forth (Leviticus 11:1-2). This is what Scripture says: "He stood and measured the earth" and so forth (Habakkuk 3:6). What is the meaning of "He stood and measured the earth"? Rather, at the time when the Holy One, blessed be He, sought to give the Torah, He stood and measured the earth, and He gave the Torah publicly, in the wilderness. Therefore, "He stood and measured the earth."

"When a person has on the skin of his flesh, etc." (Leviticus 13:2). This is what Scripture says: "Terrible and dreadful is he, etc." (Habakkuk 1:7). This verse speaks of Adam the first man, and of Pharaoh, and of Edom, [and of Sennacherib, and of Nebuchadnezzar,] and of human beings. How does it speak of Adam the first man? When the Holy One, blessed be He, created (the world) Adam the first man — Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: He created him in His likeness, as it is said, "And God created the human in His image, etc." (Genesis 1:27). And He created him from one end of the world to its other end, as it is said, "For ask now of the former days that were before you, since the day that God created the human upon the earth, and from one end of the heavens to the other end of the heavens" (Deuteronomy 4:32). And he ruled over the whole world, as it is said, "And rule over the fish of the sea, etc." (Genesis 1:28). And it says, "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be, etc." (Genesis 9:2). Therefore it is said "terrible." "And dreadful is he" — this is Adam the first man. "From him his judgment and his dignity go forth" (Habakkuk 1:7) — this is Eve, who went forth from him and caused him to die, [as it is said,] "And she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate" (Genesis 3:6). [And from where do we know that she went forth from him? For thus it is written, "Bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh"] (Genesis 2:23). Thus, "terrible and dreadful is he." [Another interpretation:] "Terrible and dreadful is he" — this is Pharaoh, who was a kosmokrator (world ruler), as it is said, "A ruler of peoples, and he released him" (Psalms 105:20). "From him his judgment and his dignity go forth" — this is Moses, who was raised within his house, and he thought that he was the son of his daughter, as it is said, "And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son" (Exodus 2:10). He arose and brought upon him ten plagues, as it is said, "[And now, go, and I will send you to Pharaoh]" (Exodus 3:10), "and this staff you shall take in your hand, with which you shall perform the signs" (Exodus 4:17). Rabbi Yehudah said: The staff was a load of forty se'ah, and it was of sapphire, and the ten plagues were engraved upon it, as a notarikon: DeTzaKh ADaSh BeAChaB. And Moses would look at the staff and see the plague that was fitting to come, and bring it upon Pharaoh. Thus, "terrible and dreadful."

"When you come into the land of Canaan, etc., and I put a plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession" (Leviticus 14:34). Let our master teach us: For how many things does leprosy come? Thus did our masters teach: The plagues come for eleven things—for idolatry, for blasphemy of the Name, for forbidden sexual relations, for thefts, for evil speech (slander), for false witness, for the judge who corrupts justice, for a vain oath, for one who enters into a domain that is not his, for one who devises thoughts of falsehood, and for one who sends forth strife among brothers. And some say: also for an evil eye. [And you may expound them all.]

Rabbi Abba bar Abbina said: For what reason is the passage of Miriam placed next to the passage of the ashes of the heifer? It is simply to teach that just as the ashes of the heifer atone, so the death of the righteous atones. Rabbi Judan said: For what reason is the death of Aaron placed next to the breaking of the tablets? It teaches that the death of the righteous is as grievous before the Holy One as the breaking of the tablets. Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said: The sons of Aaron died on the first of Nisan. Why does it mention their death on the Day of Atonement? It is simply to teach that, just as the Day of Atonement atones, so the death of the righteous atones. And from where is it shown that the Day of Atonement atones? As it is stated (Leviticus 16:30): "For on this day atonement shall be made for you, to cleanse you." And from where is it shown that the death of the righteous atones? As it is stated (II Samuel 21:14): "And they buried the bones of Saul... and afterward God responded to the plea for the land."

(Leviticus 19:23:) "WHEN YOU COME INTO THE LAND AND PLANT." This is what Scripture said (Ecclesiastes 2:5): "I MADE FOR MYSELF GARDENS AND ORCHARDS, [AND I PLANTED IN THEM EVERY KIND OF FRUIT TREE]." Now not all the children of man plant whatever they seek. Whatever a person plants in the earth, it produces, whether peppers or anything else; if a person plants, they produce. But a person does not know the place of each and every planting, where he should plant it. Solomon, however, who was wise, planted all kinds of trees, [as it is said (ibid.): "I MADE FOR MYSELF GARDENS AND ORCHARDS, AND I PLANTED IN THEM EVERY KIND OF FRUIT TREE."] Rabbi Yannai said: Solomon even planted peppers. And how did he plant them? Rather, Solomon was wise, and he knew the essential foundation upon which the world is set. From where? (Psalms 50:2:) "OUT OF ZION, THE PERFECTION OF BEAUTY, GOD HAS SHINED FORTH." Out of Zion the whole world was perfected. Why is it called the Foundation Stone? Because from it the world was founded. And Solomon knew which vein went to Cush, and he planted peppers upon it, and immediately they would produce. Thus what he says (Ecclesiastes 2:5): "I PLANTED IN THEM EVERY KIND OF FRUIT TREE."

Rabbi Tanchuma opened: "Who has given to Me beforehand, that I should repay him? Whatever is under all the heavens is Mine" (Job 41:3). This refers to a bachelor who dwells in a province and pays the wages of teachers of Scripture and Mishnah. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: It is upon Me to repay his recompense with a male child. Rabbi Jeremiah bar Eleazar said: In the future a heavenly voice (bat kol) will burst forth upon the tops of the mountains and say: Whoever has acted together with God, let him come and receive his reward. [This is what is written: "At this time it shall be said to Jacob and to Israel, what has God wrought" (Numbers 23:23).] And the Holy Spirit cries out: "Who has given to Me beforehand, that I should repay him?" Who praised before Me before I placed a soul within him? Who circumcised before Me before I gave him a male child? Who made tzitzit before Me before I gave him a cloak? Who made a parapet [before I gave him a roof? Who made a mezuzah] before I gave him a house? Who made a sukkah before Me before I gave him a place? Who set aside pe'ah before I gave him a field? Who set aside terumah and tithe before I gave him a threshing floor? Who set aside firstborn offerings, tithes, and a sacrifice before I gave him an animal? [This is what is written:] "A bull, or a sheep, or a goat" (Leviticus 22:27).

(Numbers 2:2:) EACH WITH HIS STANDARD, UNDER THE SIGNS OF THEIR FATHERS' HOUSES, etc. This is what Scripture says (Psalms 20:6): LET US SHOUT FOR JOY IN YOUR SALVATION, AND IN THE NAME OF OUR GOD LET US SET UP OUR STANDARDS, etc. Israel said: O Lord God, we shout for joy in Your salvation, in what You did for us in Your name. LET US SHOUT FOR JOY IN YOUR SALVATION, as it is said (Exodus 14:30): AND THE LORD SAVED ISRAEL ON THAT DAY. It is written wayyosha (which can be read "and He was saved"), as it were: Israel is redeemed, and it is as if God is redeemed. AND IN THE NAME OF OUR GOD LET US SET UP OUR STANDARDS — for God placed His name within our names and made us into standards, as it is said: EACH WITH HIS STANDARD UNDER THE SIGNS. With great love the Holy One, blessed be He, loved Israel, for He made them into standards like the ministering angels, so that they would be recognizable — the sons of Reuben by themselves and the sons of Simeon by themselves. And from where do we know that He loved them? As it is said (Song of Songs 2:4): HE BROUGHT ME TO THE HOUSE OF WINE, AND HIS STANDARD OVER ME IS LOVE. To what is the matter comparable? To a rich man who had a storehouse full of wine. He went in to inspect it and found that it had turned to vinegar. As he came to leave the storehouse, he found there one cask of [good] wine. He said: This cask is worth as much to me as the whole storehouse. So too the Holy One, blessed be He, created seventy nations, and out of them all He found pleasure in none but Israel, as it is said: HE BROUGHT ME TO THE HOUSE OF WINE (yayin) — yod, yod is twenty, nun is fifty: thus seventy; and out of them all He loved none but Israel, as it is said: AND HIS STANDARD OVER ME IS LOVE. And it says (Song of Songs 6:8-9): THERE ARE SIXTY QUEENS, etc.; ONE IS MY DOVE, MY PERFECT ONE.

(Numbers 5:13:) "And a man lay with her carnally" — this excludes a minor, for he is not a man. "[With her] carnally" — it is her own lying that renders her unfit, and no other lying renders her unfit. There is a story of two sisters who resembled one another. One was married in one city, and the other was married in another city. The husband of one of them sought to accuse his wife of infidelity, and to make her drink the bitter water in Jerusalem. They went to that city where her sister was married. Her sister said to her: "What did you see fit to come here for?" She said to her: "My husband seeks to make me drink." Her sister said to her: "I will go in your place and drink." She said to her: "Go." She put on her sister's garments and went in her place, and drank the bitter water, and was found pure. She returned to her sister's house. Her sister came out to meet her, rejoicing, and embraced her and kissed her. When the two of them kissed one another, she smelled the bitter water, and immediately she died — to fulfill what is said (Ecclesiastes 8:8): "No man has power over the spirit to restrain the spirit, neither has he power over the day of death."

Another interpretation of (Numbers 8:2): "When you set up the lamps." Israel said (in Psalms 43:3): "Send out Your light and Your truth; they will lead me." Great is the light of the Holy One, blessed be He. The sun and the moon give light to the world, but from where do they shine? They snatch from the sparks of the light of above, as it is said (in Habakkuk 3:11): "At the light of Your arrows they go, at the brightness of Your flashing spear." Great is the light of above, for only one part in a hundred has been given to all the creatures, as it is said (in Daniel 2:22): "He knows what is in the darkness, etc." Therefore I made sun and moon to give light before you, as it is said (in Genesis 1:17): "And God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth."

"These are the names of the men" (Numbers 13:16). And what were their names? Sethur ben Michael (ibid. 13), Nahbi ben Vophsi (ibid. 14), Geuel ben Machi (ibid. 15). There are people whose names are comely but whose deeds are ugly; there are those whose names are ugly but whose deeds are comely; there are those whose names and deeds are comely; and there are those whose names and deeds are ugly. Those whose names are comely but whose deeds are ugly: these are Ishmael and Esau. Ishmael means "God hears"; Esau means "he does the will of the One who made him" — yet their deeds were ugly. Those whose names are ugly but whose deeds are comely: these are the ones who came up out of exile — the children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Temah (Ezra 2:53). Those whose names are comely and whose deeds are comely: these are the tribes. Those whose names are ugly and whose deeds are ugly: these are the spies. What is written concerning them (Numbers 13:13)? "Sethur" — for they sealed off (satru) God from the world.

"And he spoke to Korah and to all his company, saying: In the morning [the Lord will make known who is His]" (Numbers 16:5). What did he see, that he said "In the morning the Lord will make known"? Moses said: Perhaps it was out of eating and drinking that they said this thing. Therefore he said: "In the morning" — perhaps in the meantime they will repent. He said to them: I have no permission to enter now, for before Him there is neither eating nor drinking; rather, it is on our account, because we have eaten and drunk.

Rabbi Isaac opened (with Ecclesiastes 7:23): "All this I tested with wisdom." It is written (in I Kings 5:9 [4:29]): "And God gave Solomon wisdom [and so forth, like the sand which is on the seashore]." The Rabbis say: Wisdom was given to him equal to all Israel. And Rabbi Levi said: Just as the sand is a fence for the sea, so was wisdom a fence for Solomon. The proverb says: Knowledge you lack—what have you acquired? Knowledge you have acquired—what do you lack? (Proverbs 25:28): "A breached city without a wall is a man who has no restraint over his spirit." [Like a breached city that has no wall in it, so is a man who has no restraint over his spirit.]

(Numbers 22:20:) "And God came to Balaam at night." This is what Scripture says (Job 33:15-17): "In a dream, in a vision of the night... then He opens the ears of men... to turn man away from his deed, and He hides pride from a man." What is the meaning of "and He hides from a man"? The Holy One, blessed be He, hid from him that his going would destroy him from the world and lead him to the pit of corruption. For at the hour when a person goes to sin, Ha-Satan dances before him until he completes the transgression. Once he has destroyed him, he turns back and informs him, as it is said (Proverbs 7:22-23): "He goes after her suddenly... until an arrow pierces his liver." So did the Holy One, blessed be He, hide it from Balaam until he went and destroyed his soul. After he had departed from his honor and gone and destroyed his soul, and knew the state he was in, he began to plead for his soul (Numbers 23:10): "Let my soul die the death of the upright."

Another interpretation (of Numbers 27:7): "You shall surely give them" — for they received a portion on the other side of the Jordan, and they drew near before Joshua and Eleazar in the land of Canaan, as it is said (Joshua 17:4): "And they drew near before Eleazar the priest, and before Joshua son of Nun, and before the princes, etc." And our father Jacob too knew that they would receive a portion from here and from there, as it is said (Genesis 49:22): "Daughters stepped over a wall" — this is the Jordan, which became a wall for Moses so that he would not enter the land; and [Jacob] said to [Joseph]: "Your daughters receive a portion from here and from there."

You find that Sennacherib exiled Israel in three exiles. First, he exiled the Reubenite, the Gadite, and half the tribe of Manasseh. The second was the tribe of Zebulun and the tribe of Naphtali, as it is stated (Isaiah 8:23): "In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali." And the third, he exiled the rest of the tribes, as it is stated (ibid.): "and the latter time he made it grievous." Nebuchadnezzar too exiled three exiles from the tribe of Judah and Benjamin. In the first he exiled Jehoiakim; in the second, Jehoiachin. What did he do? He bound him in a carriage and honored him, as it is stated: "Behold, I send you away like a queen mother." Just as a man honors this queen mother, so did Nebuzaradan do to him; and he exiled Zedekiah — behold, three exiles. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: In this world Israel was exiled on account of iniquities, but in the time to come, "If your banishment is at the end of the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will take you" (Deuteronomy 30:4). And it says: "And he shall gather the dispersed of Judah" (Isaiah 11:12). And it says: "And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away" (Isaiah 35:10). And it says: "For the Lord has comforted Zion; He has comforted all her waste places, and He has made her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; gladness and joy shall be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song" (Isaiah 51:3).

"She is not afraid for her household because of snow, for all her household are clothed in scarlet" (Proverbs 31:21). Hezekiah said: The judgment of the wicked in Gehinnom is twelve months — six months in the heat and six months in the cold. At the beginning the Holy One, blessed be He, brings upon them an itching, and they say, "This is the Gehinnom of the Holy One, blessed be He." And afterward He takes them out into the snow, and they say, "This is the cold of the Holy One, blessed be He." At the beginning they say "Wah," and in the end they say "Woe." That is what David said: "He brought me up out of the pit of tumult, out of the miry clay" (Psalms 40:3) — from the place where they say "Wah" and "Woe." And where do they meet their end? Rabbi Yehudah Berabbi says: In the snow. This is what is written, "When Shaddai scattered kings in it, it snowed in Zalmon" (Psalms 68:15). The snow is their Zalmon. Could it be that Israel too is so? Scripture teaches, saying, "for all her household are clothed in scarlet" — circumcision and uncovering, tzitzit and tefillin, "you shall surely furnish him" (Deuteronomy 15:14), "you shall surely give" (Deuteronomy 15:10), "you shall surely open" (Deuteronomy 15:11), "you shall surely tithe" (Deuteronomy 14:22). Therefore Moses admonishes Israel, "you shall surely tithe."

(Psalm 97:7, end:) "ALL GODS BOW DOWN TO HIM." When He judges the peoples of the world, He will judge their gods along with them, as it is stated (in Isaiah 66:16): "FOR IN FIRE WILL THE LORD EXECUTE JUDGMENT…." Since they are unable to stand in the fire, they fly away. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, sends out angels with collars and chains, and they cast them into the midst of the fire, as it is stated (in Malachi 3:19): "AND THE DAY THAT COMES SHALL SET THEM ABLAZE…."

(Ps. 79:12:) [And] return sevenfold to the bosom of our neighbors their reproach <with which they have reproached you, O Lord>. R. Yudan bar Gadya, R. Yehoshua ben Levi, and the Rabbis [differ]. R. Yudan bar Gadya said: He will remember what they did to us regarding the circumcision, which is set in a man's bosom. And this agrees with what R. Hanina bar Shilka and R. Yehoshua of Sikhnin and R. Levi said in the name of R. Yohanan: What did the household of Amalek do to Israel? They would cut off their circumcisions and throw them upward and say, "Here is for you what you chose." R. Yehoshua [ben Levi] said: He will remember for them what they did in the Temple, which is the bosom of the world, as it is said, "And from the bosom of the ground up to the lower ledge <was two cubits>" (Ezek. 43:14). Samuel came and paid them back, as it is said, "And Samuel hewed Agag <in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal>" (1 Sam. 15:33). What did he do to him? R. Abba bar Kahana said: He cut his flesh into pieces, olive-sized, olive-sized, and fed them to the ostriches. This is what is written, "It shall consume the limbs of his skin; the firstborn of death shall consume his limbs" (Job 18:13)—he chose for him a bitter death. And the Rabbis said: He set up four stakes and stretched him out upon them, while he [Agag] said, "Surely the bitterness of death is past" (1 Sam. 15:32)—thus do they put princes to death by severe deaths. And R. Samuel bar Avdimi said: He judged him by the law of the nations of the world, neither with witnesses nor with warning. R. Yitzhak said: He castrated him, as it is said, "And Samuel said, As your sword has bereaved women <so shall your mother be bereaved among women>" (1 Sam. 15:33). R. Levi said: The Torah too hinted this to Israel, as it is said, "When men strive together <one with another>" (Deut. 25:11), "and she puts out her hand and seizes him by his private parts, then you shall cut off her hand <your eye shall have no pity>" (Deut. 25:11–12). What is written after it? "Remember what Amalek did to you" (Deut. 25:17).

(Genesis 27:4–5:) "And make me delicacies," etc.; "And Rebekah was listening," etc.; [And Esau went to the field]. Since he would catch and bind them, and the angel would go and release them and drive them off, again he would catch them, and the angel would release them. And why so? Only in order to roll along the hours until Jacob should go, so that he might go and prepare and come in to his father and eat and receive the blessings. Therefore (Genesis 27:5): "And Esau went to the field to hunt game to bring."