Midrash Tanchuma Reader

(Lev. 7:12:) “If he offers it for a thanksgiving, and he shall sacrifice.” See how the Holy One, blessed be He, forgives the sins of Israel. See what did they offer to the Holy One, blessed be He? It is simply that the Holy One, blessed be He, said, “Whoever has a bull, let him bring a bull; and whoever has a calf let him bring a calf.

Whoever has a lamb, let him bring a lamb. Whoever has a dove, let him bring a dove. Whoever has not one of all these, let him bring fine flour; and whoever has neither flour nor anything at all, let him bring words.” Thus it is stated (in Hos. 14:3), “Take your words with you and return unto the Lord.”

And do you say that it is accepted? Said the Holy One, blessed be He, (as in Hos. 12:3, cont.), “and we shall pay with our lips for the bulls.” Why? As there is no greater repentance in front of the Holy One, blessed be He, than confession.

It is therefore stated (in Lev. 7:12), “If he offers it for a thanksgiving” (as the word for thanksgiving can also be understood as confession).

(Lev. 11:1-2:) “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying […], ‘Speak unto the Children of Israel, saying, “These are the creatures that you may eat….”’” It is stated (in Hab. 3:6), “He arose and measured the earth; He looked and made nations tremble.” What is the meaning of “He arose and measured the earth?” It is simply that, when the Holy One, blessed be He, wanted to give the Torah to Israel, He arose and measured (mdd) the earth. Then he gave the Torah in public in the desert. Therefore (in Hab. 3:6), “He arose and measured the earth,” because He wanted to return the world to the measurements of His waters, when the nations did not want to accept the Torah.

If it had not been for Israel accepting it, the world would have returned to the measurements of His waters. [It is] just as you say (in Is. 40:12), “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand?” But when Israel accepted it, the earth was still, as stated (in Ps. 76:9), “the earth was afraid and was still.” So it is from there (i.e., from Sinai) that the gentiles received their judgement, as stated (Hab. 3:6, cont.), “He looked and made nations tremble (rt.: ntr).”

R. Tanhum ben Hanila'i said, “He permitted (hittir) what was forbidden, abhorrent creatures and creeping things.” The matter is comparable to a physician who went to visit two patients. He saw that one of them was in danger. He said to the children of his house, “Tell him to eat whatever he wants.” He saw the other, who was recovering.

He said to the children of his house, “Such and such food he may eat; such and such food he may not eat.” They said to the physician, “What is [the difference] that you said to the one, ‘Let him eat whatever he wants,’ but said to the other one, ‘Such and such food he may eat; such and such food he may not eat?’” The physician said to them, “When I saw that the one was dying, I said, ‘Give him [any food] because he is going to die’; but let the other one watch himself, because there is life in him.”

So also the Holy One, blessed be He, has permitted (hittir) abhorrent creatures and creeping things to the gentiles. But in the case of Israel, because they are [destined] for life, He has said to them (in Lev. 11:44), “and be holy, for I am holy”; (in Lev. 11:43) “You shall not make yourselves loathsome.” This you may eat and this you may not eat. Why?

Because they are alive, as stated (in Deut. 4:4), “But you who clung to the Lord your God are all alive today.” Ergo (in Hab. 3:6), “He arose and measured the earth; He looked and permitted (rt.: ntr) gentiles,” [that which is forbidden]…. Three things Moshe found difficult [to comprehend], and the Holy One, blessed be He, showed him, etc.

(Lev. 13:2:) “When anyone has [on the skin of his flesh a swelling or a sore or a bright spot].” This text is related (to Job 38:25), “Who split open a channel for the flow (shtp) and a path to move the sounds?” R. Joshua of SIkhnin said in the name of R. Levi, “In Arabia they call the hair (s'r) a flood (shtp'). Thus for each and every hair that a person has, the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle (literally, well).” Because Job uttered a complaint and said, (in Job 9:17), “’For He crushes me with a tempest (rt.: s'r) and multiplies my wounds for no reason,’ [i.e.] for no reason He has brought all these afflictions upon me.”

Elihu said to him (in Job 34:10), “Heaven forbid! May wickedness be far from God and injustice from the Almighty.” Rather (in vs. 11), “’For he repays a person according to his actions, [and provides for one according to his ways].’ He brings everything [upon a person] according to his [own] measure (of what he does).”

R. Abbin the Levite said in the name of R. Abba bar Kahana, “The Holy One, blessed be He, does not measure out [reward and punishment] in a basket. Rather everything is with justice, as stated (in Ps. 75:8), ‘For it is God who judges]; one He puts down, and another He lifts up.’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Job, “Even with regard to the hair which is upon you, I have made a follicle for it and made a measure for it, as stated (in Job 38:25), ‘Who split open a channel for the flow (i.e., for the hair).’”

There is a story about a certain priest who examined leprosy spots. When he became poor, he wanted to go abroad. He called his wife [and] said to her, “Because people used to come to me to show their leprosy spots, it is hard from me to leave them. Rather come and let me teach you, so that you may examine the leprosy spots.

If you see a person's hair with its follicle dried up, you will know that [such a person] is stricken; because for each and every hair the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks. If] its follicle dries up, the hair dries up.” His wife said to him, “But surely if for each and every hair the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks], in your case, since you are a human being, with so many hairs on you and with your children being supported by you, is it not all the more certain that the Holy One, blessed be He, will summon support for you?”

Therefore, she did not allow him to go abroad. Another interpretation (of Job 38:25), “Who split open a channel for the flow”: When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the human, He created him with wisdom. How? If He had created him with a lot of water and a little blood, he would have become frail. If He had created him with a lot of blood and a little water, he would have become a leper. [He therefore created him with] half water and half blood, [thereby] a perfect human.

(Lev. 15:25:) “And when a woman has had a discharge of blood for many days.” But are there not seven days in a menstrual period? So why did it call them “many days?” Simply because she is separated from her husband and they are days of suffering, they are called “many days.”

Similarly (in Exod. 2:23), “And it came to pass in the course of those many days [that the king of Egypt died].” It calls them “many days,” because they were days of suffering. [Likewise] (I Kings 18:1) “And it came to pass in those many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year.” And is it not that there were not [even] three years, but rather a month from the first, the whole second year and a month from the third?

Simply because they were years of famine, they are called “many days.” Similarly (in Esther 1:4), “In his displaying the glory of his kingdom and the preciousness of the splendor of his greatness many days, one hundred and eighty days.” Simply because they were days of suffering, it calls them, “many days.” Similarly (in Joshua 11:18), “Joshua made war many days.”

Similarly (in II Chronicles 16:3), “Israel has gone many days without the true God, without a priest to give instruction.” And [yet] it is written (Joshua 24:31), “Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all of the days of the elders who had length of days.” It is simply that since they [also] worshipped idolatry, they are called, “many days.” Here too, because she is separated from her husband and they are days of suffering, they are called “many days.”

(Lev. 16:1:) “After the death of Aaron's two sons.” It was taught in a baraita in the name of R. Eliezer: Nadab and Abihu died only because they had taught halakhah in the presence of their master, Moses. There is a story about a disciple that taught halakhah before his master.

So his colleague said to his wife, Mamma Shalom, “This man will not live out the year.” And indeed he did not live out the year. His disciples said to him, “O our master, are you a prophet?” He said to them (in the words of Amos 7:14), “’I am neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet.’

Rather this was handed down to me from my masters, ‘Whoever teaches halakhah in the presence of his master is under sentence of death.’” According to a baraita a disciple is forbidden to teach halakhah in the presence of his master until he is twelve mil away from him, [a distance] corresponding to the [extent of] the camp of Israel. This is what is written (in Numb. 33:49), “They encamped by the Jordan from Beth-Jeshimoth as far as Abel-Shittim.”

R. Nahum bar Jeremiah was in [Hefer]. They would ask him, and he would teach. They said to him, “Rabbi, have we not learned thus: A student is forbidden to teach halakhah in the presence of his master until he is twelve mil away from him, [a distance] corresponding to the camp of Israel? And your master, R. Mani, dwells in Sepphoris.”

He said to them, “Surely if I had known [of his presence], I would not have taught.” From that time on he did not teach [there]. In four places [Scripture] mentions the death of Aaron's sons, and it also mentions their transgression. And why all this? 26(27):8; Lev. R. 20:8; Numb.

R. 2:24. To inform you that they had only this sin on their hands. R. Eleazar of Modim said, “Go out and see how grievous the death of Aaron's sons was for the Holy One, blessed be He; for in every place that [Scripture] mentions their death, it mentions their transgression. And why all this?

So as not to give those who come into the world a pretext for saying, ‘Disgraceful acts were secretly done by them, because of which they died.’” Bar Qappara said in the name of R. Jeremiah bar Eleazar, “Aaron's sons died because of four things: For the drawing near, for the sacrificing, for alien fire, and for not taking advice from each other. For drawing near, in that they entered the innermost sanctuary. For the sacrificing, in that they offered a sacrifice, which they had not been commanded [to offer]. For alien fire, in that they had brought fire from a cookhouse (instead of from off the altar). And for not taking advice from each other.”

R. Mani of Sha'av and R. Joshua of Sikhnin said in the name of R. Levi, “Aaron's sons died because of four things, and [a sentence of] death is recorded in connection with all of them. Because they entered without washing hands and feet, and it says (in Exod. 30:20), ‘When they come unto the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water lest they die.’

Because they entered while lacking [the proper priestly] clothes, and it says (in Exod. 28:43), ‘And they shall be upon Aaron and his sons in their coming to the tent of meeting….’” And what did they lack? R. Levi said, “They were lacking a robe, and [a sentence of] death is recorded in connection with [that lack], where it is stated (in Exod. 28:35), ‘And it (the robe with golden bells and pomegranates) shall be upon Aaron for officiating, so that the sound of it shall be heard, [when he comes into the sanctuary]… [lest he die].’”

“And because they had no children, and [a sentence of] death is recorded in connection with [that lack], where it is stated (in Numb. 3:4), ‘But Nadab and Abihu died…; and they had no children.’ Because they entered and had drunk wine, and it says (in Lev. 10:9), ‘Drink no wine or intoxicating liquor… lest you die.’” Abba Hanin says, “Because they had no wives, and it is recorded (in Lev. 16:6), ‘and he shall make atonement for himself and for his household.’”

R. Levi said, “They had a lot of arrogance and were saying, ‘Which woman is worthy of us?’ A lot of women were remaining unmarried and waiting for them. But they were saying, ‘Our father’s brother is king, our father is high priest, our mother's brother is prince, [and] we are deputy high priests. Which woman is worthy of us?’”

R. Menahama [said] in the name of R. Joshua bar Hanina, “[It is] about them [that] it says (in Ps. 78:63), ‘Fire devoured their young men, and their maidens had no nuptial song.’ Why had fire devoured their young men? Because of their maidens, who had no nuptial song.” And moreover, [their arrogance may be inferred] from this (i.e., from Exod. 24:1), “Then He said unto Moses, ‘Go up unto the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu.’”

This teaches that Moses and Aaron walked first, while Nadab and Abihu came after them; but still they were saying, “When will these two old men die, and we shall assume authority over the community in their place?” R. Judan said in the name of R. Ayyevu, “They said it to each other with their mouths, they said it in front of [Moshe and Aharon].”

R. Pinhas said, “They pondered it in their hearts.” R. Berekhyah said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them (in Prov. 27:1), ‘Do not boast of tomorrow, since you do not know what will be born today’; a lot of colts have died, and their skins have been made into coverings for their mothers’ backs.” And in addition [their transgression may be inferred] from this (i.e., from Exod. 24:11), “But He (i.e., the Holy One, blessed be He,) still did not raise His hand against the nobles of the Children of Israel.”

From here [it follows] that they deserved to have a hand raised [against them]. R. Hosha'ya said, “Did cellaria (i.e., provisions) go up with them to Sinai, since it says (ibid., cont.), ‘they beheld God, [and they ate and drank]?’ It is simply that they feasted their eyes on the Divine Presence. [Hence they were] like someone who beholds his colleague in the midst of eating and drinking.”

R. Johanan said, “[There was] actual eating [and drinking], since it is written (in Prov. 16:15), ‘In the light of the king's face there is life; His favor is like a rain cloud in spring.’” R. Tanhuma said, “[Exod. 24:11] teaches that they became bold in their hearts and stood on their feet, [while] they feasted their eyes on the Divine Presence.” R. Joshua of Sikhnin said in the name of R. Levi, “Moses did not feast his eyes on the Divine Presence, as stated (in Exod. 3:6), ‘Moses hid his face….’

In reward for (Exodus 3:6, cont.) ‘and he feared,’ he merited (Exod. 34:30), ‘and they feared to approach him’; in reward for (Exodus 3:6, cont.) ‘from gazing,’ he merited (Numbers 12:8) ‘and he gazed [at] the picture of the Lord’; in reward for ‘Moses hid his face,’ he merited (Exod. 34:30), ‘and behold, his skin of his face shone.‘ But Nadav and Avihu feasted their eyes on the Divine Presence, but did not benefit from the Divine Presence.”

And in addition, [the boldness of Aaron's sons may be inferred] from this (i.e., from Numb. 3:4), “But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord […].” R. Johanan, said, “Was it before the Lord that they died? [The verse] simply teaches that it is grievous for the Omnipresent when children of righteous people pass away during their [parents'] lifetime.” R. Nahman asked in front of R. Pinhas bar Hama beRabbi Simon, “Here (Numb. 3:40), ‘before the Lord’ [occurs] two times.

But later (I Chronicles 24:2), ‘in the presence of their father’ [occurs only] one time.” It is simply that it teaches that it was twice as grievous for the Holy One, blessed be He, as for their father. (Numb. 4:3:) “In the Sinai Desert.” R. Meir said, “Did they die in the Sinai Desert? It is simply that from Mount Sinai they received their sentence of death. [The situation is comparable] to a king who was marrying off his daughter, when there was found something obscene in his bridal agent. The king said, ‘If I kill him now, I shall impede my daughter's joy.

Tomorrow my joy is coming, and I will kill him. It is better [to kill him] during my own joyous celebration, and not during my daughter's joyous celebration.’ Similarly the Holy One, blessed be He, said, ‘If I kill Nadab and Abihu now, I shall impede the joyous celebration of the Torah. Tomorrow My own joyous celebration is coming.

It is better [to kill them] during My own joyous celebration, and not during the joyous celebration of the Torah.’ This is what is written (in Cant. 3:11), ‘on his wedding day,’ i.e., the day of the giving of Torah; ‘in the day of his joyful heart,’ i.e., in the tent of meeting.”

(Lev. 19:2:) “You shall be holy.” R. Pinhas bar Hama the Priest said that R. Reuben said, “What is the meaning of that which is written (in Ezek. 3:12), ‘and I heard after me?’ I heard a great roaring sound. What is the meaning of ‘after me ('hry)?’ After ('hry) I and my friends praised Him, I heard the ministering angels, as they praised Him and said (ibid., cont.), ‘Blessed be the glory of the Lord from His place.’”

You should know that at the time that Moses went up above, he heard the voice of the angels praising like this. He [then] came down and taught Israel that they should say like this in a whisper, “Blessed be the name of His glorious majesty forever and ever.” R. Shmuel bar R. Nahmani said, “See what is written there (Ezekiel 1:25), ‘when they stood, their wings would droop.’ One who hears, ‘when they stood,’ would think there is sitting above.

But [in fact] it is all in standing, as stated (Is. 6:2), ‘Seraphs standing above Him.’ And so does it state (Dan. 7:16), ‘I approached one of those standing.’ And so too (I Kings 22:19), ‘I saw the Lord sitting on His throne and all the host of the heavens were standing over Him.’ And what is the meaning of ‘in their standing, their wings drooped?’

From when Israel praised [God], the wings of the ministering angels drooped, [meaning] they stopped (stood) from saying praise, as they say praise with their wings.” It also says (in Job 38:7), “When the morning stars (i.e., the seed of Jacob) sang together, all the children of God (i.e., all the angels) shouted for joy.”

R. Mani said, “Let not the recitation of the Shema be trivial in your eyes, because there are two hundred forty-eight words in it corresponding to [the number of] parts that are in a human being; and out of them [comes], ‘Blessed be the name of His glorious majesty forever and ever.’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “If you have kept what is Mine in reciting it properly, I will also keep what is yours.”

Therefore, David offered praise (in Ps. 17:8), “Keep me as the pupil of an eye.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Prov. 4:4), “Keep My commandments and live.” R. Simeon ben Halafta said, “To what is the matter comparable? To someone who [lives] in the Galilee and has a vineyard in Judea, while someone in Judea has a vineyard in the Galilee.

The one who [lives] in the Galilee goes to Judea to cultivate his vineyard. The one in Judea goes to the Galilee to cultivate his vineyard. [One day] they meet with each another, and one said to the other, ‘Instead of you coming to my place, keep watch over what is mine in your area; and I will keep watch over what is yours in my area.’” So did David say (in Ps. 17:4), “Keep me as the pupil of an eye.”

The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Prov. 4:4), “keep My commandments and live.” Similarly the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, “Keep the commandment to recite the Shema morning and evening, and I will keep you.” So is it stated (in Ps. 121:7), “The Lord shall keep you from all evil; He shall keep your soul.”

(Ps. 36:7:) “Your righteousness (rt.: tsdq) is like the mighty mountains; [Your judgments are like the great deep].” R. Judah bar Simon said, “The charity (rt.: tsdq) which You did with Noah in the ark was like the mighty mountains. [Thus it is stated (in Gen. 8:4),] ‘And the ark came to rest in the seventh month on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.’

And the judgments are those which You rendered with [his] generation and carried out strictly with them as far as the great deep. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 7:11), ‘on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth.’ Moreover, when You remembered him, You did not remember him alone, as stated (in Gen. 8:1), ‘Then God remembered Noah, all the beasts, and all the cattle […].’” When R. Joshua ben Levi went away to Rome, he saw there two marble columns covered with bedding so that they would neither be cracked in the burning heat nor frozen in the cold. He [also] saw there a certain pauper with a reed mat under him and a reed mat over him.

With reference to the columns, he read (Ps. 36:7), “Your righteousness (i.e., your charity) is like the mighty mountains.” Indeed, when You give, You bestow abundantly. But with reference to the pauper, he read (ibid., cont.), “and Your judgments are like the great deep.” [Indeed,] when You are striking, you deal strictly. What is the meaning of (Ps. 36:7, cont.), “You save man and beast, O Lord.”

Alexander of Macedon went off to the king of Qatsia beyond the mountains of darkness. He arrived at the province named Carthage, which was entirely [inhabited by] women. They came out to meet him. They said to him, “If you wage war with us and are victorious against us, your name will go forth in the world as one who destroyed [a province of] women; and if we wage war with you and conquer you, your name will go forth in the world for having women wage war with you and conquer you.

Then you will never again stand up to [another] kingdom.” When he went away, he wrote over the entrance gate, “I, King Alexander of Macedon, was a fool until I came to the province of Carthage and learned [to take] counsel from women.” He went to another province named Africa. They came out to meet him with golden apples, with golden pomegranates and with golden bread.

He said to them, “Is gold eaten in your land?” They said to him, “Was it not like this for you in your own country, why did you come to us?” He said to them, “I have not come to see your wealth.

Rather I have come to see your laws.” While they were sitting [there], two men came before the king for judgment. One said, “Your majesty, I bought a deserted building from this man; and when I cleaned it out, I found a treasure in it. So I said to him, ‘Take your treasure, because I [only] bought a deserted building.

I did not buy a treasure.’” But the other said, “Just as you are afraid of a punishment for robbery, so likewise am I afraid of punishment for robbery; for when I sold you the deserted building, I [also] sold you whatever was in it.” The king summoned one of them. He said to him, “Do you have a son?”

He said, “Yes.” He called the other one. He said to him, “Do you have a daughter?” He told him, “Yes.” [The king] said to them, “Let them go and marry one another.

Then both of them will use up the treasure.” Now Alexander began to be amazed. The king said to him, “What reason do you have to be amazed? For did I not judge well?”

He told him, “Yes.” He said to him, “If this case had arisen in your land, what would you have done about it?” He said to him, “We would have taken the head off of this one and off the other one. Then the treasure would go to the house of the king.”

He said to him, “But does the sun shine upon you?” He told him, “Yes.” “And does the rain come down upon you?” He told him, “Yes.”

“Are there perhaps [some] sheep and goats in your land?” He told him, “Yes.” He said to him, “[Woe to] that man! It is for the sake of the sheep and the goats that the sun shines for you and that the rain comes down upon you.

So it for the sake of the [flocks] that you are saved.” Thus it is written (in Ps. 36:7, cont.), “You save human and beast, O Lord.” For the sake of the beast does the Lord save man. Israel said, “Master of the world, we are like man; [but] save us like beasts, since we are drawn after You like beasts, as stated (in Cant. 1:4), “Draw me after you […].”

Where are we drawn after You? To the Garden of Eden, as stated (in Ps. 36:9), “They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You have them drink at the river of Your Edens.” R. Eleazar bar Menahem said, “’Your Eden’ (in the singular) is not written here, but ‘Your Edens,’ because each and every righteous person has an Eden for himself.” (Ps. 36:7, cont.:) “You save human and beast, O Lord.” R. Isaac said, “The ordinance for humanity and the ordinance for the beast are one.

An ordinance for humanity is (Lev. 12:3), ‘And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.’ And an ordinance for the beast is (Lev. 22:27), ‘and from the eighth day on it shall be acceptable.’”

Another interpretation (of Lev. 27:2), “When anyone explicitly vows”: The nations say (in Micah 6:6-7), “With what shall I come before the Lord, bow myself before God on high, [….] Does the Lord want thousands of rams […] shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my belly for the sin of my soul?” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, “Do you want to offer your children to Me?

Neither your children nor your sacrifices do I want. For my children I have given a Parashah on value equivalents (in Lev. 27:1-8) and a Parashah on sacrifices, as it is their sacrifices that are beloved in front of Me.” And so it says (in Ps. 37:16), “Better is the little of the righteous.” You yourself know what is at the beginning of the book (in Lev. 1:2), “Speak unto the Children of Israel, and say unto them, ‘When one of you presents an offering to the Lord,’” [i.e.] “of you,” and not "of the nations."

Then at the end of the book [one finds (in Lev. 27:2),] “Speak unto the Children of Israel and say unto them, ‘When anyone explicitly [vows].’” It also says (in Ps. 147:19), “He declares His words to Jacob….” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel. “If you bring before me your value equivalents, I will ascribe it to you as if you had offered up your lives before Me.”

It is therefore stated (in Lev. 27:2), “When anyone explicitly vows [to the Lord the value of human beings].” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “By virtue of the value equivalents (rt.: 'rk) I am saving you from the [fiery] preparation (rt.: 'rk) of Geihinnom, as stated (in Is. 30:33), “For Topheth has been prepared (rt.: 'rk) from of old.”

And I will prepare a table before you, just as David has stated (in Ps. 23:5), “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

(Numb. 1:1:) “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses.” Fortunate are you, Moses! Six hundred thousand were present with the priests, the Levites, and the elders. They were all present there; yet out of them all, He only spoke there with Moses, as stated (ibid.), “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses.” (Ibid., cont.)

“In the Sinai desert.” Why in the Sinai desert? From here our masters have taught, “The Torah was given through three things: through fire, through water, and through the desert. Through fire, as stated (in Exod. 19:18), ‘Now all of Mount Sinai was emitting smoke because the Lord had descended upon it in fire, and the smoke from it arose like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled greatly.’

Through water, as stated (in Jud. 5:4), ‘Lord, when You went forth from Seir, when You marched [from the field of Edom, the earth trembled, even the heavens dripped, even the clouds dropped water].’ Through (i.e., in) the desert, as stated (in Numb. 1:1), ‘Then the Lord spoke unto Moses in the Sinai desert.’”

And why was it given through these three things? It is that, just as these are free for all who come into the world, so too are the words of the Torah free for all who come to the world. Thus it is stated (in Is. 55:1), “Ho, all who are thirsty, come to the waters (of Torah); even if you have no money, come, buy food, and eat. So come, buy food, wine, and milk without money and without cost.”

“In the Sinai Desert.” Why in the Sinai desert? It is that whoever does not make himself ownerless like the desert cannot acquire the Torah. It is therefore stated, “in the Sinai desert.”

(Numb. 5:13:) “In that a man has slept with her carnally.” [“A man” is to] exclude a minor, and one who is not a man. “[With her] carnally.” [This is the case] when her sleeping renders her unfit; and no other sleeping renders her unfit. [There is] a story about two sisters who resembled each other.

Now one was married in one city and the other was married in another city. The husband of one of them wanted to accuse her of infidelity and have her drink the bitter water in Jerusalem. She went to that city where her married sister was. Her sister said to her, “What was your reason for coming here?”

She said to her, “My husband wants to have me drink [the bitter water].” Her sister said to her, “I will go in your place and drink it.” She said to her, “Go.” She put on her sister's clothes, went in her place, drank the bitter water, and was found clean.

When she returned to her sister's house, she joyfully went out to meet her, then embraced and kissed her on the mouth. As soon as the one kissed the other, she smelled the bitter water and immediately died, in order to fulfill what is stated (in Eccl. 8:8), “No human has control over the wind to contain the wind, nor is there control on the day of death […].”

(Numb. 16:7-8:) “You Levites have gone too far! So Moses said unto Korah, ‘Please listen, you Children of Levi.” Do you have someone speaking with Joseph, who tells Simon to listen? Some say that he wished him to reconsider. So he said gentle words to him. When he saw that he did not listen to him, he said (to himself), “Before others join with him, they should reconsider.” He began to urge them (in Numb. 16:8), “’Please listen, you Children of Levi,’ is the honor that you have too little.”

It is so stated (in vs. 9) “Is it too small a thing for you […]?” He turned again to Korah (in vs. 10), “That he has had you approach Him and all your brother Levites along with you?” [It was] because he was the head person in the tribe, that his brothers had become an extension of himself. (Numb. 16:11:) “Therefore you and all your company have come together against the Lord.” Is this dissension which you are creating against us?

Is it not rather against the Holy One, blessed be He? It is comparable to a king who had a lot of slaves. He wanted to make one of them a freedman and give him a dominion. He reconsidered and [even] made him [one of the] senators. His companions rose up against him.

If he had made himself a freedman and taken this dignity for himself, it would have been well for them to rise up against him. Now that his master has acted for him, when anyone rises against him, is not such a one rising up against his master? So also did Moses say to them, “If my brother Aaron had taken the priesthood for himself, it would have been well for you to murmur against him. [But since] the one who gave it to him was the Holy One, blessed be He, to whom belong royalty, high office and power, whenever someone rises against my brother Aaron, is he not taking sides against the Holy One, blessed be He?”

It is therefore written (in Numb. 16:11), “and as for Aaron, what is he that you murmur against him?” Come and see the piety of Aaron the righteous! When Moses stood Aaron up and poured the anointing oil upon his head, Aaron trembled with fear. He said to him, “Moses my brother, perhaps I was not worthy to be anointed with the anointing oil; for I may have acted fraudulently and become liable to excision, since it is stated (in Exod. 30:32), ‘Upon human flesh it shall not be poured.’” Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, has testified over him (in Ps. 133:1-3), “See how good and pleasant it is […]!

It is like the precious oil upon the head running down onto the beard, the beard of Aaron […]; Like the dew of Hermon….” [Scripture] has compared the anointing oil with the dew of Hermon. As the dew of Hermon has no [rules concerning] fraudulent use, neither does the anointing oil that was on the head of Aaron have [rules concerning] fraudulent use. It is therefore written (in Numb. 16:1), “[Therefore you and all your company] have come together against the Lord.”

With all these words Moses [tried to] appease Korah, but you do not find that he gave him any answer. Because he was clever in his wickedness, he said [to himself], “If I answer him, I know that, since he has great wisdom, he will now overwhelm me with his words and seduce me into being reconciled with him against my will. It is [hence] better that I not respond to him.” When Moses saw that there was nothing to be gained with him, he withdrew from him. (Numb. 16:12:) Then Moses sent to summon Dathan and Abiram. They also persisted in their wickedness and did not care to answer him (ibid., cont.), “and they said, ‘We will not come up.’” Their [very] mouths tripped up [these] wicked men, for a covenant is made with the lips. So they went down to Sheol, as stated (in Numb. 16:33), “So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol.” After they had gone down alive to Sheol, they died. (Numb. 16:13:) “Is it so small a matter that you have brought us up from a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the desert, [that you must also lord it over us]?”

They said to him, “On what basis do you assume superiority over us? What good have you done with us? You brought us out of the land of Egypt, which was (according to Gen. 13:10) “like the garden of the Lord”; but you have not brought us into the land of Canaan. Rather here we are dying in the desert, where the plague is sent among us every day; (according to Numb. 16:14) ‘would you put out the eyes of these people….’” (Numb. 16:15:) “Now Moses was very angry.”

He was very anguished. To what is this comparable? To a man who argues with his companion and reasons with him. When he answers him, he has peace of mind; but if he does not answer him, then this involves great anguish.

R. Isaac began [his discourse] (with Eccl. 7:23), “All this I tested with wisdom; I thought I could fathom it, but it eludes me.” It is written (in I Kings 5:9), “So God gave Solomon wisdom and discernment in great measure, with understanding....” R. Johanan said a parable in the name of R. Simeon ben Yehozedek, “This is comparable to a king who had a friend, and the king loved him exceedingly. The king said to him, ‘Ask me anything you want and I will give it to you.’

And that friend was very wise. He said [to himself], ‘If I ask him to make me a duke, it [alone] will come to me.” Rather I will ask him for something that is attached to all the advantages.’ Immediately he answered and said to the king, ‘Since you asked that I should ask for something in front of you, I am asking from you that you marry off your daughter to me.’

The king said, ‘By your life, I want this. Behold my daughter is [given] into your house.’ So [too] at the time that the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Solomon (in I Kings 3:5), ‘Ask what I should give to you,’ Solomon said [to himself], ‘What shall I ask; If I ask for silver and gold, it [alone] will come to me. If I ask for the monarchy, it [alone] will come to me.

Rather I will ask for something that is attached to all the things.’ Immediately he said in front of the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘Master of the World, I only request from you wisdom.’ [Then] the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, ‘You have asked well in asking for wisdom, as all the things are attached to it. Silver and gold are attached to it, as stated (in Prov. 8:19), “My fruit is better than gold, fine gold, and my produce than choice silver.”

Monarchy is attached to it, as stated (in Prov. 8:15), “Through me kings reign.” Behold everything is given to you.’” Hence it is written (in I Kings 5:9), “So God gave Solomon wisdom,” as He gave him wisdom as a gift. (I Kings 5:9, cont.:) “As vast as the sand of the sea.” The rabbis say, “[This] teaches that He gave him as much wisdom as all Israel, who are compared to the sand, as stated (in Hos. 2:1), ‘The number of the Children of Israel shall be like that of the sands of the sea.’

How is this? The sages have knowledge, the elders of knowledge and the children have knowledge, but they are different, one from the other. And [so] if all of Israel would be on one side and Solomon on the other side, his wisdom would be greater than theirs.” R. Levi said, “Just as sand is a wall and a fence for [the sea], that it not go out and flood the world; so that his wisdom stand in front of his [evil] impulse, that he not sin.” The proverb says, “If you lack knowledge, what have you gained? If you have gained knowledge, what do you lack?” Like (in Prov. 25:28) “A city broken into with no walls,” so “is a person who does not restrain his spirit.” (I Kings 5:10:) “Now Solomon's wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the East.”

And what was the wisdom of the peoples of the East? [In that] they knew about astrology and were astute at divination (from birds). Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel said, “I like three things about the people of the East: They do not kiss on the mouth, but only on the hand; When they cut meat, they cut only with a knife and not on the back of the hand; And when they take counsel, they take it only in the field. It is therefore stated (in Gen. 31:4), ‘So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field where his flock was.’” (I Kings 5:10, cont.:) “From all the wisdom of Egypt.”

What was the wisdom of Egypt? You find that when Solomon wanted to build the Temple, he sent to Pharaoh Necho and said to him, “Send me craftsmen [to work] for a wage, for I want to build the Temple.” What did Pharaoh do? He gathered all his astrologers and said to them, “Foresee which people are going to die this year and send them to him.

So that I can come to him with a grievance and say to him, ‘Give me the value of the craftsmen that you killed.’” When they came to Solomon, he foresaw through the holy spirit that they would die during that year. He [therefore] gave them shrouds and sent them [back] to [Pharaoh]. He sent to him, saying, “Do you not have shrouds to bury your dead?

Here they are for you with their shrouds. Go and bury your dead.” Hence it is stated, (I Kings 5:10, cont.) “from all the wisdom of Egypt.” (I Kings 5:11:) “And he was wiser than any man, than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalkol, and Darda the sons of Mahol.” “Wiser than any man (literally, than all of Adam),” than the first Adam.

And what was his wisdom? You find that, when the Holy One, blessed be He, wanted to create the first Adam, he consulted with the ministering angels. He said to them (in Gen. 1:26), “Let us make humankind (Adam) in Our image.” They said to him (in Ps. 8:5), “What is a human that You are mindful of him?”

He said to them, “This Adam that I want to create Adam shall have wisdom greater than yours.” What did He do? He gathered all cattle, wild beasts, and fowl pass before them. He said to them, “What are the names of these [beings]?”

They, however, did not know. When He had created Adam, He made them pass before him. He said to him, “What are the names of these [beings]?” He said, “It is fitting to call this one an ox, this one a lion, this one a horse, [...]” and so on for all of them.

It is so stated (in Gen. 2:20), “So Adam recited names for all the cattle.” He said to him, “And you, what is your name?” Adam said to him, “Adam, because I was created out of the ground (adamah).” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “I, what is My name?”

He said to him, “The Lord, because you are Lord over all creatures,” namely as written (in Is. 42:8), “I am the Lord, that is My name,” which the first Adam gave me. “That is my name,” the one which I have agreed to [for use] between Me and My creatures. (I Kings 5:11, cont.:) “[Wiser] than Ethan the Ezrahite.” This is Abraham, of whom it is stated (in Ps. 89:1), “A maskil (a psalm of erudition) of Ethan the Ezrahite.” (I Kings 5:11, cont.:) “And Heman (rt.: 'mn).” This is Moses, of whom it is stated (in Numb. 12:7 with reference to Moses), “he is trusted (rt.: 'mn) in all My house.” (I Kings 5:11, cont.:) “Calcol (klkl).”

This is Joseph, of whom it is stated (in Gen. 47:12), “And joseph sustained (rt.: klkl) [his father and his brothers].” The Egyptians said, “Has this slave come to rule over us for any reason but because of his wisdom?” What did they do to him? They brought seventy tablets and wrote on them in seventy tongues.

Then when they cast them before him. He read each and every one in its own tongue. And not only that, but he spoke in the holy tongue, which they did not have the ability to understand, as stated (in Ps. 81:6), “He made it a statute upon Joseph, when he went out over the land of Egypt. I hear a language I had not known.” (I Kings 5:11, cont.:) “Darda (drd')].”

This is the generation (dor) of the desert, which had knowledge (de'ah). (I Kings 5:11, cont.:) “The children of Mahol,” i.e., the Children of Israel whom the Divine Presence forgave (rt.: mhl) for the deed of the calf. (I Kings 5:12:) “Moreover he composed three thousand proverbs.” R. Samuel bar Nahman said, “We have gone over all of the scriptures and have found that Solomon only uttered prophetically close to eight hundred verses. Then what is meant by three thousand? [This number] teaches that each and every verse that he spoke contains two [or] three interpretations, just as it says (in Prov. 25:12), ‘Like an earring of gold, a necklace of fine gold, [so is a wise reprover to a listening ear].’” But the rabbis say, “Every verse has three thousand proverbs, while each and every proverb has a thousand and five interpretations.” [(I Kings 5:12, cont.:) “And his song numbered a thousand and five.”]

“Songs” is not written here, but “song,” the song of the proverb. (I Kings 5:13:) “And he spoke with/concerning ('al) the trees.” Is it possible that a person would speak with the trees? Solomon merely said, “For what reason is a leper cleansed through the tallest among the trees (the cedar) and through the lowest of the low (the hyssop); through (according to Lev. 14:4) cedar wood, [crimson stuff,] and hyssop?’

It is simply because he had exalted himself like the cedar, that he was stricken with leprosy. As soon as he humbled himself like the hyssop, he was therefore cured through hyssop”. (I Kings 5:13, cont.:) “He also spoke with/concerning ('al) the cattle and the fowl.” Is it possible that [a person] would speak with cattle and with fowl? Rather [the passage is concerned with] why the cattle are permitted [as food] with [the cutting of] two organs (the gullet and the windpipe); but the fowl, with [the cutting of] one organ (i.e., the gullet or the windpipe). Because cattle were created from the dry land, as stated (in Gen. 1:14), “Let the earth bring forth the living creatures after its kind, cattle, creeping things,” they are permitted with two organs.

But in regard to fowl, because they were created from the mud, they were permitted with one organ. As one text says [they came] from the dry land, while another text says [they came] from the sea. [The text stating fowls came] from the dry land is what is written (in Gen. 2:19), “So from the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every fowl of the heavens.” The other text says (in Gen. 1:20), “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures and the fowl fly above the earth.” Bar Qappara said, “They were created from the mud which is in the sea.”

R. Abbin said the name of R. Jose the Galilean said, “Nevertheless, the feet of the cock resemble the scaly skin of the fish.” (I Kings 5:13, cont.:) “And with/concerning ('al) the creeping things.”

Is it possible that one would speak with a creeping thing? Solomon simply said, “What is the reason that in the case of the eight swarming creatures which are in the Torah, one is culpable for hunting or injuring them (on the Sabbath); but in the case of the rest of the swarming creatures, one is exempt? For the reason that they (i.e. the former) have skins.” (I Kings 5:13 cont.:) “And with/concerning ('al) the fish.” Is it possible that one would so speak?

Solomon merely said, “For what reason do cattle, beasts, and birds require ritual slaughtering, while fish do not require ritual slaughtering?” Jacob the man of Kefar Gibburayya taught in Tyre with respect to fish, that they do require ritual slaughtering. When R. Haggai heard, he sent for him to come. He said to him, “On what basis did you decide this?”

He said to him, “From here (in Gen. 1:20), ‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let the fowl fly.’ Just as fowl require ritual slaughtering, so do the fish require ritual slaughtering.” He said to them (i.e., those standing by), “Lay him down to receive lashes.” He said to him, “Shall a person who speaks words of Torah be lashed?”

He said to him, “You did not decide [the law] well.” He said to him, “On what basis?” He said to him, “From here (in Numb. 11:22), ‘Are there enough flocks and herds to slaughter for them; are there enough fish in the sea to gather for them?’ The former require ritual slaughtering, while the latter [is taken] through gathering.”

He said to him, “Give [me] your beating, as it is good for retention.” And again did Jacob the man of Kefar Gibburayya teach in Tyre, [this time] with respect to an Israelite man, who came upon a foreign woman and had her bear him a son, that he should be circumcised on the Sabbath. When R. Haggai heard, he sent for him to come. He said to him, “On what basis do you hold this?”

He said to him, “[From this which is written] (in Numb. 1:18) ‘then they registered their lineages according to their families according to the house of their fathers.’” He said to them (i.e., those standing by), “Lay him down to receive lashes.” He said to him, “Shall a person who speaks words of Torah be lashed?” He said to him, “You did not decide [the law] well.”

He said to him, “Where is it shown?” He said to him, “Lie down and listen.” He said to him, “If one of the gentiles came to you in order to become a proselyte on condition that you circumcise him on the Sabbath day or on the Day of Atonement, would you profane the Sabbath on account of him or not?” He said to him, “One does not profane the Sabbath or the Day of Atonement for him but only for the son of an Israelite woman.”

He said to him, “On what basis do you hold this?” He said to him (in Ezra 10:3), “So now let us make a covenant with our God to put away all (foreign) wives and (anyone] born of them […].” He said to him, “Would you lash me on the basis of [a non-Mosaic text]?” He said to him, “It is written (ibid.), ‘let it be done [according to] the Torah.’”

He said to him, “From which [piece of] Torah?” He said to him, “From that of R. Johanan, when he said in the name of R. Simeon ben Johay, ‘It is written (in Deut. 7:3), “You shall not intermarry with them; do not give your daughters to their sons.” Why? (Deut. 7:4:) “Because they will turn your children away from following me.” Your child that comes from an Israelite woman is called "your child"; but that which comes from a foreign woman is called, not "your child," but "her child,” as stated (in Gen. 21:13), “And I will also make the son of the maidservant into a nation.”’"

He said to him, “Give [me] your beating, as it is good for retention.” Solomon said, “About all these things I have knowledge; but in the case of the parashah on the red heifer, I have investigated it, inquired into it, and examined it. Still (at the end of the verse in Eccl. 7:23), ‘I thought I could fathom it, but it eludes me.’” (Eccl. 8:1:) “Who is like the wise person, and who knows the explanation of a saying?” (Eccl. 8:1:) Who is like the wise person?

This is the Holy One, blessed be He, since it is stated about Him (in Prov. 3:19), “Through wisdom the Lord founded the earth.” (Eccl. 8:1, cont.:) “And who knows the explanation of a saying?” This [also] is the Holy One, blessed be He, who explained the Torah for Moses. (Eccl. 8:1, cont.:) “A person's wisdom lights up his face.”

R. Judan said, “Great is the power of the prophets, as they [are able to] compare the Almighty above to the form of a man, as stated (Daniel 8:16), ‘And I heard the voice of a man.’” And R. Judah bar Simon says [the proof] is from here (in Ezekiel 1:26), “and on the image of a chair was an image of a man.” (Eccl. 8:1, cont.:) “And the radiance ('oz) of his face is changed (for the better),” in that he changes the principle of judgment into a principle of mercy with respect to Israel.

R. Joshua of Sikhnin said in the name of R. Levi, “Over each and every word that the Holy One, blessed be He, spoke to Moses, He spoke to him of its [related] uncleanness and of its purification. When he made known the Parashah (starting with Lev. 21:1), ‘Speak (Emor) unto the priests,’ [Moses] said to him, ‘Master of the world, if a priest becomes unclean (through touching a human corpse), what means is there for his purification?’

When [the Holy One, blessed be He,] did not answer, at that time the face of Moses turned yellow (with shame). Then when the Holy One, blessed be He, reached the parashah on the [red] heifer, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, ‘Moses, [when I gave you] that saying which I spoke to you (in Lev. 21:1), “Go, speak unto the priests,” then you said to me, “If one becomes unclean, what means will there be for his purification,” I did not answer [you at that time.

Now] this is his purification (in Numb. 19:17), “They shall take some ashes from the burning of the sin offering (i.e., the red heifer).”‘”

(Numb. 22:12:) “Then God said unto Balaam, ‘You shall not go with them.’” He said to Him, “If so, I will curse them from where I am.” He said to him, (ibid., cont.) “You shall not curse the people.”

He said to Him, “Let me bless them.” He said to him, “They do not need your blessing, (ibid., cont.) ‘for they are blessed.’” Similarly one says to a hornet, “None of your honey and none of your sting.” (Numb. 22:13:) “So Balaam arose in the morning and said to the ministers of Balak, ‘Go unto your own land….’” Balaam did not tell them, “The Holy One, blessed be He, did not give me permission either to go or to curse.” [He] simply [said] (ibid., cont.:), “’The Lord refused to let me go with you.’

He said to me, ‘It is not in accord with your honor to go with these people. Rather [you must go] with people greater then they,’ since He takes pleasure in my being honored.” (Numb. 22:14:) “So the ministers of Moab arose [and came unto Balak and said, ‘Balaam has refused to go with us.’]” Therefore (in vs. 15), “Once again Balak sent ministers, [more numerous and more honorable than the first ones].” (Numb. 22:16-17:) “Then they came unto Balaam and said to him, ‘Thus has Balak ben Zippor said, “[Please do not refrain from coming unto me.]

For I will surely honor you greatly.”’” [Even] more than what you [wanted] formerly I will give you. Moreover, everything that you desire and whatever you ordain I will do. (Numb. 22:18:) “But Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, ‘[Even] if Balak should give me his house full of silver and gold, [I could not transgress the command of the Lord my God to do less or more].’” From here you learn that he had three things.

And they are an evil eye, a haughty spirit and a greedy soul: An evil eye, as it is written (in Numb. 24:2), “Then Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel.” A haughty spirit, as it is written (according to Numb. 22:13), “for the Lord refused to let me go with you.” A greedy soul, as it is written (according to Numb. 22:18), “[Even] if Balak should give me [his house full of silver and gold].” [He said to Balak,] “If you sought to hire soldiers to fight against them, it is a question whether they would vanquish them or fail, [yet you would pay it]; is it not [then proper] that you would give it to vanquish [them with certainty]?”

See you have learned that he sought this. (Ibid., cont.:) “I could not transgress [the command of the Lord my God].” [He was] prophesying that he could not annul the blessings with which the ancestors had been blessed by the mouth of the Divine Presence. (Numb. 22:19:) “Now you also please stay here tonight.” What is the meaning of “you also.” That in the end you will go in disappointment like the former [messengers]. (Ibid., cont.:) “So that I may know what else (rt.: ysp) the Lord may say to me.”

Thus he prophesied that the Holy One, blessed be He, was going to multiply (rt.: ysp) blessings for them through him.

"But with a lot, etc." (Numbers 26:55). This is [the meaning of] that which is stated (Proverbs 18:18), "The lot puts an end to strife." Since a sign was written for each and every tribe from Yaakov - "Zevulun will dwell on the shore of the seas" (Genesis 49:13); "Yissachar is a boney donkey, etc." (Genesis 49:14); "From Asher, his bread is fat" (Genesis 49:20) - you are only permitted to divide [the land] by the lot.

And there were miraculous acts in the lottery: Elazar the Priest wears the Urim and Tumim. And the slips of the lottery were in front of Yehoshua, as stated (Joshua 18:6) "And I will cast the lot for you here in front of the Lord, our God." But before the lot went up, Elazar said with the holy spirit, "The lot of tribe x is coming up, to take place y." And Yehoshua would extend his hand and [it] would come up [into his hand.

It was] as it is stated (Joshua 19:51), "These are the inheritances that Elazar the Priest and Yehoshua ben Nun apportioned." And this was [even] more; that the lot would yell out at the time that it went up, "I am the lot of tribe x; I have gone up to it in place y." And from where [do we know] that the lot speaks? As it is stated (Numbers 26:56), "By the mouth of (according to) the lot."

(Numb. 32:1:) “Much livestock.” This text is related (to Ps. 75:7), “For it is not from the east or from the west [or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)].” What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7) “For it is not from the east (rt.: mts') or from the west?” It is not from a person working hard by going out (rt.: mts') for trade and traveling from east to west and searching in wildernesses and on mountains (harim) that he becomes wealthy.

Rather even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and searches in wildernesses and on mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7, cont.), “or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)?” R. Abba Sanagoria says, “Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things.”

So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes possessions (nekhasim) from one and gives them to another, as stated (in Ps. 75:7, cont.), “For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.” That is why they are called nekhasim, as they are covered (nikhsim) from one and revealed to another. And why is the name of [common coins] called zuzim?

Because they move (zazim) from one and are given to another. [It is called] money (mammon), because what you count (mah [she’atah] moneh) is not anything. [It is called] coins (ma’ot), because they are from time (me’et) to time. And one can expound [with these] expression[s of money]. And so did Hannah say (in I Sam. 2:7), “The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He casts down, He also (af) lifts high,” [meaning] with the anger (af) that He bring upon one, He lifts up the other.

A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta, “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create His world? He said to her, “In six days, as stated (in Exod. 31:17), ‘for in six day the Lord made the heavens and the earth.’” She said to him, ��And what has He been doing since that time?”

He said to her, “He sits down and makes ladders for raising up one and putting down another. Hence it is stated (in Ps. 75:7), ‘For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.’” You yourself know that, when He wanted the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben to become wealthy, He brought down the Midianites in front of Israel, so that the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben would become wealthy.

What is written above (in Numb. 31:9)? “Then the children of Israel took the women and children of the Midianites captive, and all their cattle, all their livestock, and all their wealth they seized as plunder.” Then after that, it is written (in Numb. 32:1), “Now [the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad] had much livestock.” See that He brought down the Midianites and raised up the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad, to fulfill that which is stated, (in Ps. 75:8), “For it is not from the east or from the west…, for it is God who judges; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.”

(Numb. 34:1-2:) “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, ‘Command the Children of Israel and say unto them, “When you come into the land of Canaan.”’” Let our master instruct us: Before Israel entered the land, how did they say the blessing over the food? Thus have our masters taught: Before they entered the land, they used to only say a single blessing, “who sustains all.” After they had entered the land, they ordained the blessing, “for the land and for the food.” After Jerusalem was destroyed, they added “builder of Jerusalem.” After those slain at Bethther were buried, they added “who is good and does what is good.” “Who is good,” because they did not decay; and “who does what is good,” because they were given burials.

None of them, however, is more dear to you than the blessing of the land. The sages [therefore] said, “Whoever does not mention ‘for the land and for the food; a desirable, good, and spacious land; the covenant [of circumcision]; Torah; life; and food’ has not satisfied his obligation.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “The land of Israel is more dear to Me than everything.

I am the one who sought it out, as stated (in Ezek. 20:6), ‘On that day I swore (literally, raised My hand) to them that I would bring them out of the land of Egypt unto a land which I had sought out for them.’” You find [the same love for the land], when Joshua slew those kings. R. Jannay the Priest said, “There were sixty-two kings, thirty-one at Jericho and thirty one with Sisera. When he went to fight with Israel they also were slain along with him.

Why? Because they yearned to drink water from the waters of Israel. They made a request of Sisera and said to him, ‘If you please, let us come with you to war.’ And every king that requested to go to war sent and hired other kings with silver, so that they would help him.

They said to Sisera, ‘We do not request anything from you, but rather we will come for free, because we yearn to fill our stomachs with water from that land.’ Thus it is stated (in Jud. 5:19), ‘The kings came, they fought; [... on account of the waters of Megiddo; they took no gain of silver.’

This verse serves] to inform you that nothing was more beloved than the land of Israel.” The Holy One, blessed be He, had said to Moses, “This land is dear to Me, as stated (in Deut. 11:12), ‘A land for which the Lord your God cares.’ Israel also is dear to Me, as stated (in Deut. 7:8), ‘Because the Lord loves you….’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “I will bring My sons, who are beloved to Me, into a land that is beloved to Me.” Where is it shown? From what they read about the matter (in Numb. 34:2), “when you come into the land of Canaan.”

(Deut. 3:26), “Do not [ever] speak [unto me on this matter] again.]” This is related to what Job said (in Job 20:6-7), “Even though one's height ascends to the heavens, [and his head reaches the clouds]. He perishes forever, like his dung….” With reference to whom did Job say this verse?

It only speaks with reference to the day of death. So even though one ascends to the heavens and makes himself wings like a bird; when his time to die arrives, his wings are broken, and he falls before the angel of death like an animal before the butcher. So also has David said (in Ps. 146:4), “His spirit departs; he returns to the ground.” And Job has already stated (in Job 3:19), “The small and the great are there, and the slave ('eved) is free from his master.”

As even if his master bought him for thousands and thousands of gold coins, once [the slave’s] time to die has come, he cannot say, “He is my slave,” but rather he becomes free from his master. Another interpretation (of Job 20:6), “Even though one's height ascends to the heavens.” This refers to Moses, who ascended to the firmament and who came to the Araphel (the lower sky). Moreover, he was like the ministering angels in that he spoke with Him (i.e., with the Holy One, blessed be He,) face to face and received the Torah from His hand.

When his time to die arrived, He said to him (in Deut. 31:14), “Behold the days are drawing near for you to die.” [Moses] said to Him, “Master of the world, is it for nothing that my feet have trodden Araphel? Is it for nothing that I have run before Your children like a horse, that my end be for the worm? R. Abbahu said, “To what is the matter comparable? To one of the nobles of the kingdom, who found a certain Hindu sword, which was unmatched [in the world] and who said, ‘This is suitable only for the king.’

What did he do? He brought it to the king as a gift. The king said, ‘Cut off his head with it.’ So also Moses said to the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘By the word that I [used to] praise you, when I said (in Deut. 10:14), “Behold (hen), the heavens [and the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that is in it] belong to the Lord your God!’

By that [very] word (i.e., hen) You are decreeing death over me, when you say (in Deut. 31:14), “Behold (hen), the days are drawing near for you to die.”’” He said to him, “Moses, I have already decreed death over the first Adam.”

He said to him, “My master, the first Adam deserved to die. You decreed an easy commandment for him, and he transgressed it. Hence it is fitting for him to die. [God] said to him, “Consider Abraham, [who] sanctified My name in My world [but still died].” He said to him, “Master of the world, From Abraham there came out Ishmael, whose race provoked You to anger, as stated (in Job 12:6) ‘The tents of robbers prosper, [and those who provoke God have security, the ones whom God brought forth in His hand].’”

He said to him, “Consider Isaac, who stretched out his neck upon the altar.” He said to him, “From Isaac there came out Esau, who in the future will destroy the Temple and burn Your sanctuary.” He said to him, “Consider Jacob, out of whom there came twelve tribes without any flaw.” He said to him “Jacob did not ascend into the firmament, his feet did not trod Araphel, he was not like the ministering angels, he did not receive Torah from Your hand and he did not speak with you face to face.”

The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Deut. 3:26), “Enough from you; do not [ever] speak [unto Me on this matter] again.” He said to Him, “Perhaps [future] generations will say, ‘If He had not found bad things in Moses, He would not have removed him from the world.” He said to him, “I have already written in my Torah (in Deut. 34:10), “Never again did there arise in Israel a prophet like Moses.”

He said in front of Him, “The people will say] I did your will in my youth, but I did not do your will in my old age.” He said to him, “I have already written (in Deut. 32:51), “Because you acted faithlessly with me.” He said to Him, “Please let me enter the land [and spend] two or three years there, and after that let me die.”

He said to him (in Deut. 32:52), “And there you shall not go.” He said to Him, “If I am not to enter while alive, let me enter after my death.” He said to him, “Not while you are alive, and not when you are dead.” He said in front of Him, “Why all this anger against me?”

He said to him (according to Deut. 32:51), “Because you did not sanctify Me.” He said to him, “With all mortals you are guided two or three times by the principle of mercy, as stated (in Job 33:29), ‘Behold, God does all these things two or three times to a man’; yet in my case, when a single sin is found in me, you do not forgive me.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “See here, Moses, you have committed six sins, and I have not disclosed one of them.

First you said, (in Exod. 4:13) ‘Please make someone else your agent’; secondly (in Exod. 5:23), ‘For ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, [he has dealt worse with this people, and You have still not delivered Your people]’; thirdly (in Numb. 11:22) ‘If the sheep and cattle would be slaughtered for them, would it be [enough] for them’; fourthly (in Numb. 16:29), ‘The Lord did not send me’; fifthly (in Numb. 20:10), ‘Listen, you rebels, [shall we bring forth water for you from this rock]’; sixth (in Numb. 32:14), ‘And now you brood of sinners have arisen in place of your ancestors.’

But were Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob sinners, for you to say this to their children?” He said to Him, “I have learned so from You, when you said (in Numb. 17:3), ‘The censers of these who have sinned [at the cost of their lives].’ He said to him, “I said (ibid.), ‘At the cost of their lives,’ and not, ‘at the cost of their ancestors.’” He said in front of Him, “I am an individual, while Israel numbers sixty myriads (i.e., 600,000).

They have sinned before You a lot of times; and when I sought mercy on their behalf, You forgave them. You took care of sixty myriads [because of me], yet You are not taking care of me.” He said to him, “Moses, a decree over a community is not like a decree over an individual. Furthermore, up to now [the] time was delivered into your hands, but from now [the] time is not delivered into your hands.”

He said to Him, “Master of the universe, rise up from the seat of judgment and sit down upon the seat of mercy for me, so that I do not die. Then my sins shall be forgiven through torments which You shall bring on my body. So do not deliver me to the pangs of the angel of death. Moreover, if You do this, I will proclaim Your praise to all who come into the world, just as David has said (in Ps. 118:17), ‘I shall not die, but live [and recount the works of the Lord].’”

He said to him (in vs. 20), “This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall come through it.” [From this it follows that] death has been ordained from time immemorial for the righteous and for all mortals. When Moses saw that they paid no attention to him, he went to the heaven and earth, where he said to them, “Seek mercy for me.” They said to him, “Before seeking mercy for you, we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 51:6), ‘for the heavens shall vanish like smoke, and the earth shall wear out like a garment.’” He went to the stars and planets.

He said to them, “Seek mercy for me.” They said to him, “Before seeking mercy for you, we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 34:4), ‘All the host of heaven shall rot away….’” He went to the mountains and hills. He said to them, “Seek mercy for me.”

They said to him, “[Before seeking mercy for you,] we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 54:10), ‘For the mountains shall move, and the hills shall be shaken.’” He went to the Great Sea. He said to it, “Seek mercy for me.” [The sea] said to him, “Son of Amram, how is today different from a couple of [other] days?

Are you not the son of Amram, who came upon me with your rod, smote me, and divided me into twelve parts? For I was unable to stand before you because the Divine Presence was walking at your right hand. It is so stated (in Is. 63:12), ‘Who had His glorious arm walk at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters before them […].’ So what has happened to you today?”

When the sea reminded him what he had done in his youth, he cried out and said (in Job 29:2), “’O that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me!’ When I passed through you, I was a world king; but now I am prostrate, and they pay no attention to me.” Immediately he betook himself to the arch[angel] of the [Divine] Presence and said to him, “Seek mercy for me, that I not die.”

He said to him, “My master, Moses, why the exertion? This is what I have heard from behind the curtain: That your prayer is not heard on this matter.” Putting his hands on his head, Moses sobbed and wept, as he said, “With whom shall I seek mercy for myself?”

R. Simlay said, “At that time the Holy One, blessed be He, was full of anger over him, as stated (in Deut. 3:26), ‘But the Lord was angry with me […],’ until Moses began by uttering this Scripture (Exod. 34:6): ‘Then the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “the Lord, the Lord is a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger…].’” Immediately the holy spirit was cooled off.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Moses, I have sworn two oaths, one that you should die and one to destroy Israel.

To repeal both of them is impossible; so if you want to live, Israel will be destroyed.” He said before Him, “You are coming to me with a plot. You are seizing the rope at both ends. Let Moses and a thousand like him be destroyed, but do not let one person in Israel be destroyed.”

He said to him, “Master of the Universe, should feet that have climbed up to the firmament, should a face that has greeted the Divine Presence, should hands that have received Torah from Your hands lick the dust? Woe! All mortals will say, “If Moses, who ascended on high, became like the ministering angels, spoke with Him face to face, and received Torah from His hand, had no reply for responding to the Holy One, blessed be He, how much the worse it will be for [mere] flesh and blood, who comes with no [merit from] Torah and with no [merit from the] commandments?”

The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Why all this anguish that you are experiencing?” He said, “Master of the world, I am afraid of the pangs of the angel of death.” He said to him, “I am not delivering you into his hands.” He said in front of Him, “Master of the universe, my mother Jochebed, who was distressed (literally, whose teeth were blunted) during her lifetime by two of her sons, will be distressed by my death.”

He said to him, “So has it come up in [My] mind, and so is it the way of the world: every generation with its expositors, every generation with its administrators, every generation with its leaders. Up to now it has been your lot to serve in front of Me, but now your lot is over and the time of your disciple Joshua for him to serve [Me] has arrived.”

He said to him, “My Master, if I am dying because of Joshua, let me go and become his disciple!” He said to him, “If you want to do that, go and do it.” Moses arose and went early to Joshua's door. Now Joshua was seated expounding [Torah], so Moses stopped to bend his stature and put his hand on his mouth.

But Joshua's eyes were hidden, and he did not see him, so that he (Moses) would be sorrowful and resign himself to death. When Israel came to Moses' door to study Torah, they asked and said, “Where did Moshe our master [go]?” [Others] said to them, “He got up early and went to the door of Joshua.” [So] they went and found him at the door of Joshua, with Joshua sitting and Moses standing. They said to Joshua, “What has come over you that Moses our master stands, while you sit?”

When he raised his eyes and saw him, he immediately rent his clothes. Then sobbing and weeping, he said, “O my master, my master! My father, my father and lord!” Israel said to Moses, “Moses our master, teach us Torah.”

He said to them, “I am not allowed.” They said to him, “We are not leaving you.” A heavenly voice (bat qol) came forth and said to them, “Learn from Joshua.” [So] they took upon themselves to sit and learn from the mouth of Joshua. Joshua sat at the head with Moses to his right and with [Elazar and Ithamar] to his left.

So he sat and expounded in the presence of Moses. R. Samuel bar Nahmani said that R. Johanan said, “When Joshua opened by saying, ‘Blessed be the One who has chosen the righteous,” they took the traditions of wisdom from Moses and gave them to Joshua. Now Moses did not know what Joshua was expounding. After Israel arose [from the session], they said to Moses, “[Explain] the Torah [we have just heard] to us.”

He said to them, “I do not know what to answer you.” So Moses our master was stumbling and falling. It was at that time that he said, “Master of the universe, up to now I requested life, but now here is my soul given over to You.” Then when he had resigned himself to death, the Holy One, blessed be He, opened by saying (in Ps. 94:16), “’Who will stand for Me against evildoers?’

Who will stand for Israel in the time of My wrath? Who will stand in the battle of My children? And who will stand and seek mercy for them, when they sin before Me?” At that time Metatron came and fell on his face.

He said to Him, “Master of the world, [as] in Moses' life he belonged to You, so in his death he belongs to You.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “Let me give you a parable. To what is the matter comparable? To a king who had a son.

Now on each and every day, his father was angry with him and sought to kill him because he did not maintain respect for the father; but his mother rescued him from his hand. One day his mother died and the king wept. His servants said to him, ‘Our lord king, why are you weeping?’ He said to them, ‘It is not over my wife alone that I am weeping, but for my son; for many times when I was angry with him and wanted to kill him, did she rescue him from my hand?’”

So also did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to Metatron, ��It is not over Moses alone that I am weeping, but over him and over Israel, for look at how many times that they angered Me, and I was angry with them; but he stood in the breach before Me to turn back My anger from destroying them.” They came and said to Moses, “The hour has arrived for you to depart from the world.” He said to them, “Wait for me until I bless Israel, for they have not found contentment from me all my days, because of the rebukes and warnings with which I rebuked them.”

He began to bless each tribe separately. When he saw that the time was growing short, he included all of them in a single blessing. They came and said, “The hour has arrived for your soul to depart from the world.” He said to Israel, “I have caused you a lot of grief over the Torah and over the commandments, but now forgive me.”

They said to him, “Our lord master, you are forgiven.” Israel also arose before him and said to him, “O Moses our master, we have angered you a lot and increased the burden upon you. Forgive us.” He said to them, “You are forgiven.”

They came and said to him, “The moment has arrived for you to depart from the world.” He said, “Blessed be the name of the One who lives and abides forever.” He said to Israel, “If you please, when you enter the land, remember me and my bones, and you shall say, ‘Woe (oy) to the son of Amram, who ran before us like a horse but whose bones have fallen in the wilderness.’” They came and said to him, “The half moment has arrived.”

He took his two arms and placed them on his heart. Then he said to Israel, “See the final end of flesh and blood.” They answered and said, “The hands which received the Torah from the mouth of the Almighty shall fall to the grave.” At that moment his soul departed with a kiss (from the Holy One, blessed be He), as stated (in Deut. 34:5), “Then Moses [the servant of the Lord] died there [in the Land of Moab at the command of the Lord (literally, by the mouth of the Lord)].” Now [the ones who] took care of his burial were neither Israel nor the angels but the Holy One, blessed be He, [Himself], as stated (in vs. 6), “Then He (the Holy One, blessed be He,) buried him (Moses) in the valley [in the Land of Moab].”

And for what reason was he buried outside the land? So that those who die when outside the land might live [again] through his merit, as stated (in Deut. 33:21), “He has chosen the best for himself, [for there is an honored lawgiver's portion].”

But when did Moses our master die? On the seventh of Adar, as stated (in Deut. 34:5), “Then Moses the servant of the Lord died there [in the Land of Moab].” It is also written (in vs. 8), “And the children of Israel mourned Moses [on the Plains of Moab for thirty days.]”

And it is written (in Josh. 1:1), “And it came to pass after the death of Moses, [the servant of the Lord, the Lord spoke unto Joshua]”; (Josh. 4:19) “Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month (i.e., Nisan).” Reckon back thirty-three days [from then]. Ergo, he died on the seventh of Adar. And where is it shown that he was born on the seventh of Adar?

Where it is stated (in Deut. 31:2), “He said to them, ‘I am one hundred twenty years old today.’” What is the text teaching with, “today?” Today, I have fulfilled my days and any years. [It is there] to teach you that the Holy One, blessed be He, fulfills the years for the righteous from day to day and from month to month, as stated (in Exod. 23:26), “I will fulfill the number of your days.”

Another interpretation: "All of the commandment" (Deuteronomy 8:1). If you have began with a commandment, finish all of it. Why? Rabbi Yochanan said, "Anyone who began with a commandment, and afterwards another comes and finishes it, it will be called according to the name of the one who finishes it."

From who do you learn [this]? From Moshe. When Israel left Egypt, what is written? "And Moses took the bones of Yosef with him" (Exodus 13:19).

All of the people were involved in the plunder and he was taking care of Yosef's bones. He went and stood among the coffins. He called out and said, "Yosef, Yosef, the time has come for the Holy One, blessed be He, to redeem His children. The Divine Presence awaits [you], and Israel and the clouds of glory await [you].

If you will make yourself appear good, but if not, we will be free of your vow." [Whereupon] his coffin immediately stirred, and [Moses] took it and departed. Moshe departed in the wilderness and did not enter the Land. [So] Israel brought in Yosef's bones and buried them. And the commandment was draped upon them, as it is stated (Joshua 24:32), "The bones of Joseph, which the Children of Israel had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shekhem."

Therefore He said to them, "All of the commandment." Rabbi Yannai said, "Anyone who begins a commandment but does not finish it will bury his wife and two of his sons." From who do you learn [this]? From Yehudah, [where it is stated (Genesis 37:26),] "And Yehudah said to his brothers, 'What gain (betsa) etc.?'" They sat to prepare for the bread [and eat their meal].

He said to them, "We are going to kill our brother and then recite a blessing [over the bread]?" As it is stated (Psalms 10:3), "the one that loots (botsea) and blesses reviles the Lord." Hence is it written, "What gain, etc." "Come, let us sell him to the Yishmaelites" (Genesis 37:27). And they listened to him, as he was a king.

And had he said to them to bring him back to his father, they would have listened to him. But rather he began with the commandment and did not finish it. Hence one who begins with a commandment should finish all of it. Rabbi Yochanan said, "Anyone who learns Torah but does not fulfill it, it is better for him to have his placenta roll over his face [and smother him], as it is stated (Deuteronomy 8:1), 'guard to keep.'"

Rabbi Acha said, "Anyone who guards it to keep it, merits that the holy spirit should descend upon him, as stated (Psalms 89:1), 'A psalm of wisdom (maskil) of Eitan the Ezrachite, etc.' And so [too] did He say to Yehoshua (Joshua 1:8), 'Let not this Book of the Torah cease from your mouth... [and then will you comprehend (taskil)].'" Hence is it written, "to guard to keep."

And you say, "I shall eat meat" (Deuteronomy 12:20): Rabbi Eliezer beRabbi Yehoshua said, "From here you learn that a man should not acquire a litra of meat until he consults with his household." See what is [the difference] between the Israel and the [other] nations of the world. When Israel do not [ritually] slaughter, they do not eat [meat]. But the nations of the world stab and eat. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, "By your life, in the world to come, you will eat from those [animals] that are not slaughtered, from the behemoths and the Leviathan, about which it is written, 'One [scale] touches the other; not even a breath can enter between them.'"

(Deut. 16:18:) “You shall appoint judges and law officers] for yourselves in all your gates,” in every single city; “for your tribes,” even when the whole city consists of a single family, appoint judges for it. (Deut. 16:18, cont.:) “So that they may judge the people with righteous judgment.” [This is] to teach you that one effects righteousness with both of them, with the innocent one who gets what belongs to him and with the guilty one from under whose hand they take away the stolen goods.

Another interpretation (of Deut. 16:18), “righteous judgment”: During the time that they judge righteously, they effect righteousness (charity) with the people, as stated (in Ps. 85:12), “Faithfulness shall spring up from the land [while righteousness looks down from Heaven].” During the time that a faithful judgment springs up from the land, the Holy One, blessed be He, effects righteousness (charity) with the people. He also saves them from divine punishment and afflictions, while goodwill comes into the world.

Rabbi Tanchuma opened [his discourse] in the name of R. Judan [who] said in the name of R. Ayyevu (Ps. 32:9), “’Do not be like a horse or a mule, without understanding….’ Six things are stated about the horse: (1) It eats much and (2) excretes little. (3) It loves promiscuity, (4) loves battle, (5) has a haughty spirit, (6) and abhors sleep.

Moreover, there are also some who say [that] the horse wants to kill its master in battle. (Ibid.:) ‘Do not be like a horse or a mule.’ The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, ‘”Do not be like a horse of a mule,’ that has no understanding. In the case of a horse, when one adorns it or feeds it, it obstructs and bends its neck and kicks him; and so too, the mule. But you are not to be like that.

Rather be careful to repay the good person for his goodness and to repay the evil person for his evil.’ Good to the good [is] (Deut. 23:8), ‘You shall not despise the Edomite, as he is your brother.’ Bad to the bad [is] (Deut. 25:17), ‘Remember what Amalek did to you.’”

Rabbi Natan says: Beloved is the work of the Ark, like the Throne of Glory above, as it is said: "The place for You to dwell in, You have made, O LORD; the Sanctuary," and so forth (Exodus 15:17). For the Sanctuary above is set directly opposite the Temple below, and the Ark is set directly opposite the Throne of Glory above, as it is said: "A throne of glory, exalted from the first" (Jeremiah 17:12). And in what place was the site of our Sanctuary? This is the meaning of "You have made, O LORD; the Sanctuary, O Lord, which Your hands have established" (Exodus 15:17). Do not read "the place" [makhon] but rather "set directly opposite" [mekhuvan] the Throne of Glory; it is made above it, for they are atonement. He made above it a cover, for the seraphim stand above it. And he made on it two cherubim, which are beloved to Him, corresponding to heaven and earth, in which was the dwelling of the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said: "And I will speak with you there from above the cover, from between the two cherubim which are upon the Ark of the Testimony" (Exodus 25:22). See how beloved the Ark is, for the whole Tabernacle was made only for the sake of the Ark, in which the Divine Presence dwelt. And all the miracles that were performed for Israel were performed by the Ark, because the Divine Presence was within it.

And the Lord said: Behold, man has become one of us (Gen. 3:22). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Behold, this only have I found, that God made man upright (Eccles. 7:29); that is, the Holy One, blessed be He, who is called righteous and upright, created man in His own image so that he might be upright and righteous like Him. However, if you should ask: Why did He create the evil inclination, concerning which it is written: The inclination of man’s heart is evil from his youth (Gen. 8:21)?, you say thereby: Since man is evil, who can make him good? The Holy One, blessed be He, contends: You make him evil! Why is it that a child of five, six, seven, eight, or nine years of age does not sin, but only after he reaches the age of ten and upward does the evil inclination begin to develop in him?

Furthermore, if you should insist that no man is able to guard himself from the evil inclination, the Holy One, blessed be He, replies: That is not so. You caused yourself to become evil. When you were a child, you did not sin, but when you grew up, you did sin. There are many things in this world that are harsher and more bitter than the evil inclination, yet you know how to alter them. For instance, there is nothing more bitter than lupine, yet when you boil it in water seven times it becomes sweet and edible. Similarly, you sweeten mustard and capers and numerous other things. If you are able to sweeten the bitter things that I have created to satisfy your needs, how much more so are you able to control the evil inclination within you.

Thus you find that though I created Hiram, king of Tyre, righteous and upright, as it is said: Perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created (Ezek. 28:15), wickedness finally appeared in him and he was banished.

It is written of the generation of the separation: And the whole earth was of one language and of one speech (Gen. 11:1), but later they sought to ascend into the firmament, as is said: Come, let us build us a city and a tower with its top in heaven (ibid., v. 4). Hence it is written: The Lord came to see the city and the tower which the children of men had builded … so the Lord scattered them (ibid., v. 5). What a strap from such a hide!

To what may this be compared: To a king who fashioned a golden statue of himself and had it erected in the courtyard of his palace. Soon thereafter, a bird lighted upon it and defaced it. Similarly, the Holy One, blessed be He, fashioned man righteous, but the evil inclination arises within him and despoils him. Hence we read: Ye are godlike beings, and all of ye sons of the Most High; nevertheless, you shall die like men (Ps. 82:6–7).

Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre: Thus saith the Lord God: Because thy heart is lifted up, and thou hast said: I am a god, I sit in the seat of God, in the heart of the seas; yet thou art man, and not God (Ezek. 28:2). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be hasty to utter a word before God; for God is in the heavens and thou art upon the earth; therefore, let thy words be few (Eccles. 5:1). It says also: He loveth transgression that loveth strife, he that lifteth his gate seeketh destruction (Prov. 17:19). Should this verse not state that “he who lowereth his gate seeketh destruction,” since everyone who lowers his gate causes people to stumble and to be destroyed: What then is the meaning of he that lifteth his gate seeketh destruction? This means that one who opens his mouth and utters words that are unseemly brings on his own destruction, for the Holy One, blessed be He, will destroy him. Therefore, it is said: Be not rash with thy mouth (Eccles. 5:1).

Observe that the weakest of the weak above vanquished the mightiest person below, as it is written: And a certain woman cast an upper millstone upon Abimelech’s head and broke his skull (Judg. 9:53). How much more so is that true of our God in heaven.

After Hadrian, the king of Edom, conquered the entire world, he returned to Rome and told his courtiers: “I command you to acclaim me a divine being, for I have subjugated the entire world.” Whereupon they replied: “You do not rule the Holy City and the Temple.” He went there, conquered the Holy City, demolished the Temple, and exiled the Israelites. Upon his return to Rome he said: “Now I have destroyed His house, burned down His holy palace, and exiled His people; worship me as a divine being.”

R. Berechiah tells us that three philosophers resided in Hadrian’s court. The first one said to him: “Surely a man is unable to revolt against a king while he resides in the king’s palace. Depart from his palace and then proclaim yourself a god. He fashioned the heavens and created the earth; now depart from them and you shall be a divine being.” The second one told him: “You are not able to become a god, because He has already informed his prophets: Thus you shall say unto them: The gods that have not made the heaven and the earth, these shall perish from the earth, and from under the heavens (Jer. 10:11)”. The third one said to him: “Help me, I implore your assistance.” “What is the trouble?” he inquired. “I have a ship three miles out at sea,” the philosopher replied, “and it is stranded, and all my possessions are in it.” Hadrian answered: “I will send my legions and my ships to rescue it.” Thereupon the philosopher declared: “Sire, why send your ships and legions? Send forth a blast of wind and save it.” “From whence should I have a blast of wind to send?” asked Hadrian. To this the philosopher replied: “If you are unable to send forth a blast of wind, how can you call yourself a god, since it is written of God: Thus saith God the Lord: He that created the heavens and stretched them forth, He that spread forth the earth and that which cometh out of it, He that giveth breath to the peoples upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein (Isa. 42:5)?”

Thereupon, Hadrian entered his home greatly distressed. His wife said to him: “Surely these philosophers are mocking you; certainly you are able to make yourself a god. You are a mighty and powerful king, and everything belongs to you. Let me suggest one thing to you: Return His deposit to Him and then you will have made yourself a god.” “What is His deposit?” he asked. “Your soul,” she replied. “But if my soul departs from me, how shall I survive?” he retorted. Thereupon, she answered: “If you can not control your soul, as it is written: There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power over the day of death (Eccles. 8:8), how can you call yourself a god? You are merely a mortal and not a god.”

The Holy One, blessed be He, declared: I restore the dead to life, and Elijah likewise restored the dead to life, but he did not say: “I am a god”; I caused the rain to descend, and so too did Elijah; I withheld the rain, and Elijah did likewise, as it is said: There shall not be dew nor rain these years but according to my word (I Kings 17:1); I caused fire and brimstone to descend upon Sodom, and Elijah did the same, as it is said: If I be a man of God, let fire descend from heaven (II Kings 1:10). Nevertheless, he did not say “A god am I,” yet you say: A god am I: In the dwelling-place of God I sit (Ezek. 28:2). If you would claim “A god am I” because you have lived for so many years, He lives and will live until the dead are revived. Concerning the Holy One, blessed be He, it is written: His throne was fire and flames (Dan. 7:9), and of Elijah it is said: There appeared a chariot of fire and horses of fire (II Kings 2:11). It is written elsewhere concerning the Holy One, blessed be He: The Lord is in the whirlwind, and in the storm is His way (Nahum 1:3), and about Elijah Scripture says: And Elijah went up in a whirlwind to heaven (ibid. 2:11); nevertheless Elijah implored: O Lord, take away my life (I Kings 19:4). Yet you claim: A god am I, in the dwelling place of gods, I sit in the midst of the sea (Ezek. 28:2). Jonah descended into the deep, as it is written: Thou didst cast me into the depth, into the heart of the seas (Jonah 2:4). Finally, he (changed his mind) and pleaded for death, saying: Therefore, now, O Lord, take, I beseech Thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live (ibid. 4:4). Yet you presume to say: A god am I; in the dwelling-place of gods I sit, in the midst of the sea (Ezek. 28:2).

Observe that everyone who desired to be worshipped as a divine being constructed a palace for himself in the midst of the sea. Pharaoh erected a palace in the midst of the water and dammed up the water of the Nile to keep it from flowing into the Mediterranean. However, the water rose, undermined the foundations of the palace, lifted it up, and bore it away, as it is said: Speak, and say: “Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, the great crocodile that lieth in the midst of his rivers, that hath said: My river is my own” (Exod. 29:3). The Holy One, blessed be He, rebuked him: O wicked one, you were proud upon the waters; through the waters you shall perish, as it is written: But overthrew Pharaoh and his hosts in the Red Sea (Ps. 136:15).

Sennacherib erected his palace in Lebanon with certain protective devices, between two lofty mountains, but wells sprang forth out of the mountains, tore the palace from its foundations, and bore it away, as it is said: Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, and with a shadowy shroud, and of a high stature, and its top was among the thick boughs. The water nourished it; the deep made it grow (Ezek. 31:3–4). And it says also: Thus was it fair in its greatness, in the length of its branches; for its root was by many waters (ibid., v. 7), and it states: I have digged and drunk waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of Egypt (Isa. 37:25). What was his ultimate end? Thus said the Lord God: in the day when he went down to the netherworld I caused the deep to mourn and cover itself for him (Ezek. 31:15).

Hiram constructed his palace between the Adriatic and the Mediterranean Sea with certain protective devices (but to no avail), as it is said: And they shall take up in lamentation for thee and say to thee: How art thou destroyed, that was peopled from the seas, the renowned city, that was strong in the sea (ibid. 26:17). Still, you claim: A god am I; in the dwelling-place of gods I sit, in the midst of the sea (ibid. 28:2). Whereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: For thus saith the Lord God: And I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; and I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and the great waters shall cover thee (ibid. 26:19). (This will be your fate, and) you will descend to your comrades, as it is written: Then I will bring thee down with them that descend into the pit to the people of old times, and will make thee to dwell in the nether parts of the earth (ibid., v. 20). The nether parts of the earth refers to Gehenna. Hence we read in Scripture: Thou wast the far-covering cherub; and I set thee, so that thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou has walked up and down in the midst of stones of fire … and I have destroyed thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire (ibid. 28:14–16). Concerning Israel, however, Scripture states: When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee, etc. (Isa. 43:2).

And God remembered Noah (Gen. 8:1). Scripture says elsewhere in reference to this verse: A righteous man regardeth the life of his beasts; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel (Prov. 12:10). The Righteous One of the world, however, regardeth the life even of a beast, even when He is angered, for His ways are not the ways of man.

Normally, if the inhabitants of a province rebel against a king, the king dispatches his legionaries to subdue them, and they destroy the wicked and innocent alike. After all, the king does not know who was rebellious and who was loyal. The Holy One, blessed be He, however, does not behave in that fashion. Though an entire generation should anger Him, He will save a single righteous man among them. Therefore, it is written: A righteous man regardeth the life of his beasts (ibid.). And it says elsewhere: the Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knoweth those that take refuge in Him (Nahum 1:7).

But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel (Prov. 12:10). This verse alludes to the men of the generation of the flood, who were extremely cruel. Our rabbis of blessed memory posed the query: What did they do when the Holy One, blessed be He, brought the waters of the deep upon them and they saw the waters beginning to gush over them? They had given birth to many children, as it is written: Their seed is established (nakhon) in their sight with them, and their offspring before their eyes (Job 21:8). In fact, this verse implies that the women would conceive at night and give birth (nakhon) the next morning, as it is said: And would be ready (nakhon) by morning (Exod. 34:2). And their offspring before their eyes (Job 21:8) indicates that they lived to see their great-grandchildren. Some of them took their children and stuffed them unmercifully into the crevices through which the waters gushed. Hence, it is said: The mercies of the wicked are cruel. How do we know that they actually did that? Job declared: The womb forgetteth him; the worm feedeth sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered, unrighteousness is broken as a tree (ibid. 24:20). The womb forgetteth him … he shall be no more remembered signifies that they pressed their own offspring into these crevices. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do to them after that? He brought the flood down upon them and destroyed them, as it is said: Unrighteousness is broken as a tree.

R. Berechiah said: The men of the generation of the flood were exceedingly strong and tall, as it is written: These same were the mighty men (Gen. 6:4), and if He had not punished them with fire that descended from above, nothing would have been able to destroy them. Hence Job said: Surely their substance is cut off, and their abundance the fire hath consumed (Job 22:20).

After the Holy One, blessed be He, realized that they would not be drowned by the waters that gushed forth from the deep because of their height, He sent the fire upon them from above, as it is said: And their abundance the fire hath consumed. Furthermore, He turned the birds, the wild beasts, and the animals against them to reduce their numbers, as it says: And all flesh perished that moved upon the earth, the birds, the animals, and the beasts, etc. (Gen. 7:21). How did they perish? It was through the birds, the beasts, and the animals. When at long last they realized that they were about to be destroyed, they attempted to overturn the ark. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He surrounded the ark with lions, as it is said: The Lord shut them in (Gen. 7:16). The word shut in Scripture alludes to lions. How do we know this? We know it from the verse My God hath sent His angels and hath shut the lion’s mouth (Dan. 6:23).

And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel (Gen. 14:1). R. Tanhuma the son of Abba opened the discussion with the verse The wicked began with the sword, and have bent their bow; to cast down the poor and the needy, to slay such as are upright in the way; their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken (Ps. 37:14–15). The wicked began with the sword alludes to Cain, who slew his brother Abel before any other man was slain. Their sword shall enter into their own heart refers to the fact that Lamech later killed Cain. Another comment on The wicked began with the sword: This refers to Hanun the son of Nahash. Why? After the death of his father, David sent messages by the hand of his servants to comfort him (II Sam. 10:2), but Hanun seized David’s servants, shaved off half their beards and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away (ibid., v. 4). Hanun then dispatched emissaries to Aram-naharaim to hire thirty-two thousand charioteers in addition to the tens of thousands of troops he had in his army. They all assembled and encamped in one place. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Wicked one, you began with the sword, hence the sword will penetrate your heart. Therefore, Joab and Abishai destroyed them all, as it is said: So Joab and the people that were with him drew nigh unto the battle to meet the Arameans; and they fled before them (ibid., v. 13).

Another explanation of The wicked began with the sword. This refers to the four kings, Amraphel and his companions. Though war had not previously been waged in the world, they introduced the use of the sword and waged war. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: Wicked ones, because you have introduced the use of the sword to subdue the poor and the needy, their swords shall enter into their own hearts (Ps. 37:15). Hence, Abraham arose and smote them.

And the Lord said: “Shall I hide from Abraham?” (Gen. 18:17). Scripture states elsewhere in reference to this verse: It shall be for the filling of his belly; He shall cast the fierceness of His wrath upon him, and shall cause it to rain upon him into his flesh (Job 20:23). The retribution that befell the Sodomites bloated their bellies because they had filled their bellies previously through their transgressions, violence, and robbery. Hence, the punishment imposed upon them filled their bellies, as it is said: He shall cast the fierceness of His wrath upon him. R. Meir said: Scripture states concerning the rain that fell in Sodom: He shall cause it to rain upon him into his flesh (ibid.) and also: And the Lord caused to rain upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire (Gen. 19:24). Why into his flesh? Because of the wars they waged with the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said: The men of Sodom were very wicked and sinful before the Lord (ibid. 13:13). The word wicked implies toward each other; sinful indicates that they were guilty of lewdness; before the Lord means that they blasphemed and reviled the Lord and practiced idolatry; and very (m’od) signifies that they shed blood (dom).

R. Judah the son of (R.) Shalum said in the name of R. Judah the son of Simon: At the time that Amraphel and his allies fought the Sodomites, they seized Lot; Abraham heard about it and set out to do battle with them. After he slew the kings, the Sodomites escaped, as it is said: And he divided himself against them by night (Gen. 14:15), and Now the vale of Siddim was full of slime-pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled (ibid., v. 10). Abraham reflected upon the matter, saying to himself: The kings that attacked the Sodomites have been slain, while they (the Sodomites) have fled, as is said; And they that remained fled to the mountains (ibid.). Surely if they had been unworthy, they would not have been allowed to escape. The Holy One, blessed be He, replied: The fate of those that fled is alluded to in the verse: If he flee from the iron weapon, the bow of brass shall strike him through. He draweth it forth, and it cometh out of his body; yea, the glittering point cometh out of his gall; terrors are upon him; all darkness is laid up for his treasures; a fire not blown by man shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tent (Job 20:24–26). Where was all the darkness laid up? It was in the area north of Sodom, which is at the right (south) of Jerusalem, as it is said: And thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters (Ezek. 16:46). What is meant by the words It shall go ill with him that is left in his tent? They mean that the fugitive who escaped will suffer misfortune in his tent. Who was one such? The wife of Lot, as it is said: But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt (Gen. 19:26).

And Abraham took another wife (Gen. 25:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: But as for me, I will hope continually and will praise Thee, yet more and more (Ps. 71:14). R. Yudan stated: It is written: Only he shall not multiply horses to himself (Deut. 17:16). When Solomon was crowned king, he did not possess a single horse, and was compelled to ride upon an ass, but later on he obtained numerous horses.

R. Hunya said: It is written: And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised (Lev. 12:3). This indicates that a man should even go into debt in order to make the circumcision a day of rejoicing. Hence it says: And will praise Thee, yet more and more (Ps. 71:14). The rabbis maintained that this verse speaks of Abraham. He said to the Holy One, blessed be He: “You told me: For in Isaac shall seed be called unto thee (Gen. 21:12). You have multiplied Your blessings upon me, and I have borne many sons.” Hence it is said: And Abraham took another wife.

And it came to pass that when Isaac was old (Gen. 27:1). May it please our master to teach us whether a blind man is permitted to stand before the ark to lead the congregation in prayer. Thus did our master teach us: A blind man may recite the prayers preceding the Shema (“Hear, O Israel,” etc.), and he may also recite the Targum (Aramaic translation) of the Torah, but he may not lead the congregation in the prayers that follow the Shema, nor may he read from the Torah, nor lift his hands in the priestly benediction. R. Judah, however, contended that a man who was born blind was prohibited from reciting the prayers preceding the Shema as well, for he would be acting as a false witness if he did so. He would be compelled to say: “Blessed be He who created the luminaries,” when, in fact, he had never seen them.

You find that everyone who becomes blind is considered as though dead. How do we know this? R. Simeon the son of Yohai said: The Holy One, blessed be He, never associates His name with righteous men during their lifetimes. He waits until they have died, as it is said: As for the holy that are in the earth, they are the excellent in whom is all My delight (Ps. 16:3). When are men regarded as truly holy? Only after they have been buried in the earth. During their lifetimes, however, the Holy One, blessed be He, does not associate His name with theirs. And why not? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, is not certain whether or not the evil inclination within them will ultimately lead them astray. When they are dead, however, He does couple His name with theirs. Nevertheless, we find that the Holy One, blessed be he, did couple his name with that of the righteous Isaac during his lifetime, when he said to Jacob: I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, thy father, and the God of Isaac (Gen. 28:43). R. Berechiah and the rabbis discussed this matter. The rabbis maintained that He considered Isaac’s ashes as though they were heaped upon the altar, while R. Berechiah insisted that he was considered as dead because he had already lost his sight. Because of his blindness he remained secluded within his home, and the result was that the evil inclination departed from him. Hence it is written: And it came to pass that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim (Gen. 27:1).

And God remembered Rachel (Gen. 30:22). Scripture states elsewhere: He executeth justice for the oppressed (Ps. 146:7). This verse alludes to Israel. R. Phinehas the priest, the son of Hama, explained: This teaches us that there were seventy nations in Egypt, but only Israel was treated unjustly. Who dealt justly with them? He who executeth justice for the oppressed.

Another comment on He executeth justice for the oppressed: This alludes to the righteous Joseph, whose mistress wronged him, when she said: The Hebrew servant came in unto me (Gen. 39:17). “I will sever your pay if you do not hearken to me,” she told him, and he replied: He who giveth bread to the hungry (Ps. 146:7) will feed me. “I will put you in chains,” she shouted, and he retorted: The Lord looseth those that are bound up (ibid.). “I will blind your pretty eyes,” she cried; and he answered: The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind (ibid., v. 8). Finally, she said to him: “I will have you banished,” and he retorted: The Lord preserveth strangers (ibid., v. 9).

Another explanation of He executeth justice for the oppressed: This refers to Rachel, who was oppressed when her father should have sat her in the bridal litter. He placed Leah in it instead, extinguished the candles, and then led Rachel out by the hand. Is there any oppression greater than this? Who dealt justly with her? He who giveth bread to the hungry. When was that? When she hungered for children. The Lord looseth those that are bound up (ibid.), as it is said: And God remembered Rachel. Why were the matriarchs barren (for so many years)? R. Huna said in the name of R. Hiyya the son of Abba: In order that they might spend many years of their lives free of burdensome responsibilities.

And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, went out to see (Gen. 34:1). Was she not also Jacob’s daughter? Indeed, but Scripture associates her name with that of her mother. Leah’s daughter (Dinah) loved to roam about just as her mother did. How do we know this about Leah? It is written: And Leah went out to meet him (Gen. 30:16). Ezekiel declared: Behold, everyone that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying: As the mother, so her daughter (Ezek. 16:44). To see should be read as “to be seen,” for though she went out to see, she was, in fact, seen, as it is said: And Shechem the son of Hamor … saw her (Gen. 34:2).

And Shechem spoke unto his father Hamor, saying: “Get me this damsel to wife” (ibid., v. 4). He (Hamor) went to Jacob and said: Ask me ever so much dowry and gift (ibid., v. 7). And he said: I know that her grandfather Abraham was a prince, but I am also a prince. Jacob replied: He was not called a prince, but an ox, as is said: And Abraham ran to the oxen (ibid. 18:7) and Much grain (can be harvested) through the strength of ox (Prov. 14:4), but you are an ass (hamor), and it is impossible for an ox and an ass to plow together, as it is said: Thou must not plow with an ox and an ass together (Deut. 22:10). The prophet declared: You seek your own misfortune, as is said: The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying: “Give thy daughter to my son to wife”; and there passed by the wild beasts that were in Lebanon, and trod down the thistle (II Kings 14:9).

The thistle refers to Hamor, and the cedar that was in Lebanon alludes to Jacob, who was compared to a cedar, as is said” He shall grow as a cedar in lebanon (Ps. 92:13). Give thy daughter to my son for a wife refers to Shechem, for he said to him: The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter (Gen. 34:8).

And there passed by the wild beasts. These are the sons of Jacob, who were compared to beasts: Judah is a lion’s whelp (Gen. 49:9); Dan is a young lion (Deut. 33:22); Naphtali is a hind let loose (Gen. 49:21); and likewise all the others. And trod down the thistle confirms what is stated in the verse And came upon the city unawares, and slew all the males. And they slew Hamor and Shechem, his son, with the edge of the sword (Gen. 34:25–26).

When Jacob’s sons learned what had transpired: The men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought a vile deed in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter (ibid., v. 7). And they said unto them: “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised (ibid. v. 14), Go! Circumcise yourselves. They departed and circumcised themselves, as is said: And unto Hamor … harkened all (ibid., v. 24). And it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain (ibid., v. 25). The prophet cried out: And as troops of robbers wait for man, so doth the company of priests; they murder in the way toward Shechem, yea, they commit enormity (Hos. 6:9). As troops of robbers wait for man (ish) refers to Jacob, who was a righteous man (ish tam), and he was forced to await the return of his sons from their pillaging.

A company of priests alludes to the sons of Jacob, who had been called a kingdom of priests. Why does Scripture say: They murder in the way to Shechem? Because they committed an immoral act. Upon their return, Jacob began to chastise Simeon and Levi, saying: Ye have troubled me, to make me odious (Gen. 34:30). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Be not afraid, no one can harm you, as it is said: And a terror of God was upon the cities (ibid. 35:5).

His master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph (Gen. 38:7). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and they that indulge it shall eat the fruit thereof (Prov. 18:21). R. Hiyya the son of Abba declared: If a man should eat from a basket of figs without offering a blessing, death is in the power of the tongue, but if he should pronounce the blessing and then eat it, life is in the power of the tongue. All of the trials that befell Joseph occurred because of the evil he spoke against his brothers, as it is said: And Joseph brought evil report of them unto his father (Gen. 37:20).

What did he tell Jacob? Our rabbis maintain that he told his father: They treat the children of Bilhah and Zilpah as though they were servants. They call them servants, but I act toward them as one does to a brother, as it is said: Even with the sons of Bilhah and with the sons of Zilpah (ibid., v. 2). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Be assured you will be punished with the very word you have spoken, as it is said: And Joseph was sold for a servant (Ps. 105:17).

R. Judah held that he told his father: My brothers eat the limbs of living animals. However, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Even in the hour of their deepest degradation, they will not do that. They will slaughter their animals according to the rules of ritual slaughter, as is said: And they slaughtered the he-goat and dipped the coat (Gen. 37:31).

R. Yosé maintained that he told his father: They looked covetously at the native woman. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Be assured you will suffer from this very thing. You master’s wife will look covetously at you, as it is said: His master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph.

Now Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt (Gen. 42:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him; but blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it (Prov. 11:26). He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him refers to Pharaoh, whom the people cursed for hiding the corn during the years of famine. Blessings shall be upon the head of him that selleth it alludes to Joseph, who fed the people during the years of famine. David said concerning him: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, Thou leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that art enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth (Ps. 80:1). When a famine occurred during the lifetime of David, he pleaded to the Holy One, blessed be He, for mercy, saying: “Master of the Universe, tend your flock as did Joseph, who fed the world through years of famine.”

When the famine grew more serious in Egypt, the Egyptians assembled, and went to Joseph crying: “Give us bread!” He replied: “My God does not feed the uncircumcised; go circumcise yourselves and I will give you bread.” Whereupon they went to Pharaoh, crying and wailing, as it is said: When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread; Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians: “Go unto Joseph” (Gen. 41:55). They replied: “We have gone to Joseph, and he told us to do a ridiculous thing. He said: ‘Go circumcise yourselves.’” “You fools,” he retorted, “did I not advise you at the very outset to serve him and to accumulate grain for yourselves at the same time? Did he not warn you repeatedly, through the years of plenty, that the famine was coming? Since you have neglected your own welfare, why do you complain to me? Why did you not store up grain in your homes during the past two or three or four years?” “All the grain we had in our homes,” they replied, “has rotted away.” “Have you no flour left even from yesterday?” he asked. “Even the bread in our baskets has become moldy,” they answered. Thereupon he told them: Go unto Joseph: what he saieth to you, do (ibid.). “If he is able to decree that our grain should rot and it does rot, we may well fear that if he should decree that we die, we will all die.” Hence, what he saith to you, do. And the famine was over all the face of the earth (ibid., v. 56). Surely it would have been sufficient for Scripture to say “upon the earth”; why does it say over all the face of the earth? R. Samuel declared: This teaches us that the famine began among the wealthy, since the phrase the face of the earth alludes to the wealthy. Thus it says: He that withholdeth corn.

And Joseph made ready his chariot (Gen. 46:29). R. Yudan said in the name of R. Aibu: Two men were accorded more homage than any other men in all the world; they were Jethro and Jacob. It is written that when Jethro came to Moses, Moses went out to meet his father-in-law (Exod. 18:7). Who would imagine Moses going out and other people not going out with him? Would not the leaders of the thousands and the hundreds go out, and would not the seventy elders and Aaron, the high priest, go out? Indeed, if he went out, would not all Israel go out with him to meet Jethro? Similarly, when Jacob came to live with Joseph, it is written: Joseph made ready his chariot and went out. Who, upon observing Joseph going out to meet his father, would fail to accompany him? Would not Pharaoh’s servants go out, would not the elders of his household and the elders of Egypt go out? He went out to fulfill the verse The wise shall inherit honor (Prov. 3:35).

The Holy One, blessed be He, said: In this world I have allotted honor to the elders, but in the future world: Before His elders shall be glory (Isa. 24:23).

And Jacob called unto his sons (Gen. 49:1). May it please our master to teach us whether the one who leads the congregation in prayer may respond “Amen” after the priests. Thus did our sages teach us: The person who leads the congregation in prayer is not permitted to respond “Amen” after the priests. The fact that the person who leads the congregation in prayer may not respond “Amen” after the priest proves how precious he is to the Holy One, blessed be He. R. Hanan said: When ten men enter a synagogue, the one who recites the prayers preceding the Shema is called a lily among the thorns (Song 2:2).

The Holy One, blessed be He, declared: Previously I blessed My creatures, as it is said: And God blessed Noah (Gen. 9:1), and the Lord blessed Abraham in all things (ibid. 24:1); and God blessed Isaac, his son (ibid. 25:11), And God appeared unto Jacob again when he came from Padan-aram and blessed him (ibid. 35:9). Henceforth, however, the priests and the righteous ones shall bless you.

From whom did the priests receive the privilege of pronouncing the blessing over Israel? R. Eleazer the son of Azariah said: They received this privilege from Jacob, concerning whom it is written: And the lad will go yonder(koh) (Gen. 22:5). The word koh is also contained in the words spoken by Moses to the priests, as it is said: Thus (koh) shall ye bless (Num. 6:22). The rabbis maintained: They obtained this right at the time of the giving of the Torah, since it is said there: Thus (koh) shalt thou say to the house of Jacob (Exod. 19:3).

Now Moses was keeping the flock (Exod. 3:1). Scripture states elsewhere: Every word of God is tried; He is a shield unto them that take refuge in Him (Prov. 30:5). The Holy One, blessed be He, does not confer greatness upon a man until He tests him in lesser things. Only then does He elevate him to greatness. Two great men in the world were tested and found to be faithful before He raised them to positions of greatness. He tested David by means of a sheep. What did David do? He led the sheep into the desert to keep them from feeding from the field of others, and that is why his brother Eliab said to him: With whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? (I Sam. 17:28). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Thou hast been found trustworthy with regard to sheep, and so now I shall entrust My flock to you that you may shepherd them, as it is written: Thou shalt shepherd My people Israel (I Chron. 11:2). And Scripture likewise says: From following the ewes that give suck He brought him to be shepherd over Jacob, His people, and Israel, His inheritance (Ps. 78:71).

Similarly, when Moses tended the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, he led it to the farthest end of the wilderness in order to keep the sheep from stealing. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: You have been found trustworthy with regard to sheep; now I shall entrust My flock to you that you may shepherd it, as it is said: Thou didst lead Thy people like a flock, by the hand of Moses and Aaron (Ps. 77:21).

Observe that the Holy One, blessed be He, did not divulge the existence of Moses until he was three months old, as it is said: She hid him three months, and when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes (Exod. 2:3). She then placed the child within the ark and set it in the Nile. Then it is written: The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe (ibid., v. 5). Our sages of blessed memory said: She went there to cleanse herself of the idolatry practiced in her father’s palace. Others maintain that she had been suffering from leprosy, but when she stretched out her hand toward the righteous one, she was cured.

And sent her handmaid to fetch it (Ps. 2:5). Her hand was extended and stretched forth. Then she took the child and brought him to the Egyptian women to be nursed, but he refused their breasts. Surely it is permissible to be nursed by them. We have been taught that an Israelite may not suckle the child of an idolater, but that an idolater may suckle the child of an Israelite if she does so with her permission. What is meant by “with her permission”? It means that if she eats the food of Israelites she may nurse him. The Holy One, blessed be He, declared: In the future, this child will speak with Me, and the Egyptian women will then say: “I nursed the one who now speaks with the Shekhinah.” Therefore, he refused their breasts.

And the Lord said unto Moses: “See, I have set thee in God’s stead to Pharaoh” (Exod. 7:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors (Ps. 24:7). Solomon spoke this verse when he brought the Ark into the Holy of Holies. He had constructed an Ark ten cubits wide which he desired to bring into the Temple. He carried it there, but when he reached the entrance of the Temple, the entrance was only ten cubits wide. It is, of course, impossible to carry an object of ten cubits through an opening of ten cubits. Moreover, those who were carrying it were unable to enter with it. Solomon arose in dismay, not knowing what to do. He began to plead with the Holy One, blessed be He: O Lord God, turn not away the face of Thine anointed (II Chron. 6:42).

What did Solomon do? Our sages of blessed memory said: He raised the coffin of his father, David, and prostrated himself before it, praying: O Lord God, turn not away the face of Thine anointed. R. Berechiah declared in the name of R. Helbo: At that time David came to life, as you may understand for yourself from David’s own words: O Lord, Thou broughtest up my soul from the netherworld; Thou didst keep me alive, that I should not go down to the pit (Ps. 30:4). Solomon said: Master of the Universe, make it go in for his sake: Remember the good deeds of David Thy servant (II Chron. 6:42). And his prayers were answered immediately, as it is said: O Lord God, turn not away the face of Thine anointed. What is written after that? Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, etc. (ibid. 7:1). The Holy Spirit then cried out, saying: Wherefore I praise the dead that are already dead (Eccles. 4:2). Thereupon Solomon began to pray: Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; that the King of glory may come in (Ps. 24:7). The gates wanted to crush his head, for they thought that he had called himself the King of glory. They said to him: Who is this King of glory? (ibid., v. 10), and he replied: The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. When he responded in this way, they were appeased. If they had not been, they would have fallen on his head and crushed him.

And it came to pass in the middle of the night, that the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt (Exod. 12:29). The Creator of the night divided the night precisely. The Lord smote all the first born. It was the Lord Himself who smote the firstborn and not His emissary (Moses). In fact, even though a man was elsewhere, and his firstborn was in Egypt, he died. How do we know that the firstborn of the Cuthites, Puthites, and Ludites were also slain? It is said: And smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham (Ps. 78:51). Only the firstborn of the Pharaoh remained alive in fulfillment of the verse However, it was for this that I raised you up (Exod. 9:16). And Ba’al Saphon was the only idol remaining, to mislead them, in fulfillment of the verse He increaseth the nations, and destroyeth them (Job 12:23). Unto the firstborn of the captives (Exod. 12:29). Why were the firstborn of the captives punished? Because they had rejoiced in the decrees promulgated against Israel. Hence it is written: He that is glad at calamity shall not be unpunished (Prov. 17:5). You must not be of the opinion that only the captives reacted in that manner, for the slaves and handmaidens did likewise, as is said: Even unto the firstborn of the maidservants that is behind the mill (Exod. 11:5); that is, even those who were legally bound to the millers. Even their firstborn cattle were destroyed lest the people assert: “Our deities are powerful, and that is why punishment was imposed upon them (and not upon us).”

And Pharaoh rose up in the night (Exod. 12:30). Perhaps (he rose at) the third hour (9:00 a.m.), the time at which kings are accustomed to arise. (Therefore) Scripture says specifically in the night. Perhaps he was awakened by the princes and the princesses, (and therefore) the verse states he arose, to inform us that he went to the door of the servants’ quarters and aroused them. He went with them, calling out: “Where are Moses and Aaron resting?” as it is said: And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said: “Rise up, get you forth from among my people” (ibid., v. 31). Whereupon Moses replied: The Holy One, blessed be He, told us: And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning (ibid., v. 22). Are we thieves that we should steal away under the cover of night? No. We shall depart proudly, in full view of the Egyptians.

Why did Pharaoh and his servants approach him, saying: Get you? The time Pharaoh told him: Get thee from me, see my face no more (ibid. 10:29), he (Moses) insisted: But we shall not leave until all these servants shall come down unto me (ibid. 11:9), to escort us from this place. This verse indicates that Moses paid homage to royalty, since he did not say to him: “You and all your servants.” In fact, the Holy One, blessed be He, had previously charged Moses and Aaron to be respectful to royalty, as it is said: And the Lord spoke unto Moses and Aaron, and gave them a charge unto the children of Israel, and unto Pharaoh king of Egypt (ibid. 6:13). Joseph was respectful to royalty when he said: It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace (Gen. 41:6). Jacob was respectful to royalty; and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed (ibid. 49:2). Elijah paid homage to royalty, as is said: And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah (I Kings 18:46). Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah also were respectful to royalty, and so was Daniel.

Go serve the Lord, but who are they that shall go? (Exod. 10:8), he asked, and you replied: We shall go with our young and with our old. Then I say to you: Arise up, get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel (ibid. 12:31), only let your flocks and your herds remain (ibid. 10:24). You answered: Our cattle also shall go with us, there shall not a hoof be left behind (ibid., v. 26). Then take both your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone (ibid. 12:32). Would that you had already departed. Then you added: Thou must also give into our hands sacrifices and burnt-offerings (ibid., v. 28). Take whatever you wish and depart, and bless me also (ibid., v. 32); said Pharaoh.

And I will get me honor upon Pharaoh (Exod. 14:4). This verse tells us that whenever the Holy One, blessed be He, exacts retribution from the nations, His name is exalted in the world, as it is said: And I will work a sign among them, and I will send such as escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard My fame, neither have seen My glory; and they shall declare My glory among the nations (Isa. 66:19).

And it is written elsewhere: Thus said the Lord: The labor of Egypt, and the merchandise of Ethiopia, and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine; they shall go after thee, in chains they shall come over; and they shall fall down unto thee, they shall make supplication unto thee; surely God is in thee, and there is none else (ibid. 45:14), and that is followed by: And verily, Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior (ibid., v. 15).

It says also: And will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will cause to rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone (Ezek. 38:22). And following that is written: Thus will I magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will make Myself known in the eyes of many nations; and they shall know that I am the Lord (ibid., v. 23).

Furthermore, it says: In Salem also is set His Tabernacle; and His dwelling place in Zion. There He broke the fiery shafts of the bow; the shield and the sword, and the battle. Selah (Ps. 76:3–4). And there too it is written: In Judah is God known, His name is great in Israel (ibid., v. 2).

And Jethro rejoiced (Exod. 18:9). Do not read this word as vayihad (“and he rejoiced”) but rather vayihed (“and he became a yehudi [a Jew]”). Why did Jethro say: Blessed be the Lord (Exod. 18:10)? Jethro said: I have not neglected to worship any idol in this world, but I have found no god like the God of Israel. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the gods (ibid. 11).

Four men said four things which, had they been uttered by other men, would have been scoffed at with the comment: “How does he know about the ways of the Holy One, blessed be He?” These four were Moses, Nebuchadnezzar, Jethro, and Solomon. Moses said: The Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice (Deut. 32:4), but if any other man had said this, they would have said about him: “How does he know that?” It was proper, however, for Moses to make this statement, since it is written about him: He made known His ways unto Moses (Ps. 103:7). Thus Scripture says: Show me Thy ways (Exod. 33:13).

Solomon said: He hath made everything beautiful in its time (Eccles. 3:11). If any other man had made this statement, they would have laughed at him, saying: “Who told him what is beautiful in its time and what is not beautiful?” Solomon, however, could properly make such a remark since nothing was lacking from his table.

R. Hama the son of Hanina declared: Even ice in the (hot summer) month of Tammuz and melons in the (cool spring) month of Nisan were not lacking from Solomon’s table. Why did he say: He hath made everything beautiful in its time? He said in its time because the taste of growing things changes from season to season.

Nebuchadnezzar said: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and He doeth according to His will in the hosts of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand, nor say unto Him: What doest thou? (Dan. 4:32). If anyone else had said this, they would have ridiculed him, saying: “How does this wicked one know this?” But it was fitting for him to say it, since it is written about him: And wheresoever the children of men, the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven dwell, hath He given them into thy hand, and hath made thee to rule over them all (ibid. 2:38). Jethro said: Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods; yea, for by the things they planned to do evil (they were destroyed) against them (Exod. 18:11). This may be compared to the man who loaded his ass, only to have the load fall upon him. This happened to the Egyptians. They intended to destroy the Israelites in the water, and they themselves were drowned in the water. Thus it is written: For by the thing they planned to do evil against them.

It has been taught: thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart (Lev. 19:17). You might say that this means you must not strike him or curse him. However, since Scripture says in thy heart, the verse refers only to hate in one’s heart. How do we know this? If someone observes something unseemly in his friend’s behavior, he is obliged to reprove him, as Scripture says: Thou shalt surely rebuke him (ibid.). However, if he does rebuke him and he refuses to accept the rebuke, he must continue to rebuke him. How do we know this? Because Scripture says: Thou shalt surely rebuke him. It is possible that one might continue to rebuke him to the point at which his countenance will change (from embarrassment). Hence Scripture states: Thou shalt not bear sin because of him (ibid.).

It has been taught because of this verse Thou shalt surely rebuke him that the master (must rebuke) his disciple. How do we know that the disciple must also rebuke his master? We learn from what Scripture states: Thou shalt surely rebuke him.

He who does not rebuke a sinner is considered culpable for the sin that was committed. Mar said: Everyone who is able to restrain the men of his household from committing a sin, yet fails to do so, is held responsible for the sins committed by the men of his household. If he is able to restrain the men of his city, and does not do so, he is held responsible for the men of the city, and if he could have restrained the inhabitants of the world from sinning, he is held culpable for the sins of the inhabitants of the world. R. Hanina said: Why is it written: The Lord will enter into judgment with the elders of His people and the princes thereof (Isa. 3:14)? After all, if it is the princes who have sinned, why should the elders be considered as having sinned? The elders have sinned because they failed to dissuade the princes from sinning.

R. Judah declared that Rav said: Why is it written: And the Lord said unto him: “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that are done in the midst thereof” (Ezek. 9:4). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Gabriel: Go, mark a tav with ink on the forehead of the righteous men so that the angel of destruction shall not prevail over them, and place a tav with blood upon the forehead of the wicked men so that the angel of destruction shall have power over them. Divine Justice said to the Holy One, blessed be He: Master of the Universe, what really is the difference between the two? He answered: One is wholly righteous and innocent, while the other is wholly wicked. But Master of the Universe, she responded, it was in their power to at least attempt to restrain the wicked from behaving as they did, but they did not seek to prevent it. Whereupon He retorted: It is disclosed and known to Me that even if they had tried to prevent them, they would not have obeyed. Forthwith she retorted: Master of the Universe, this was revealed to You, but was it known to them?

He turned and said: “Slay utterly the old man and the young man, the maiden, the little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin with My Sanctuary.” Then they began with the elders that were before the house (Ezek. 9:6). Why does it say begin with My Sanctuary? R. Joseph taught: Do not read mikdashi (“My Sanctuary”) but rather mekudeshi (“My sanctified ones”). These are the men who accepted and fulfilled the Torah in its entirety, from alef to tav. Hence you learn that even the completely righteous are held responsible for their generation.

Similarly, it states: That I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked (Ezek. 21:8). The righteous ones were cut off because they did not try to restrain the wicked ones. That is why you find that King Josiah was held responsible for the acts of his generation, even though it is written concerning him: And like unto him there was no king before him (II Kings 23:25). How far should one go in reproving one’s neighbor? Rav said: Until his neighbor strikes him. Samuel contended: Until he curses him. R. Johanan held: Until he becomes angry. All three reached their conclusions from the same verse, where it is said: Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him: “Thou son of perverse rebellion” (I Sam. 20:30). And then it is written: And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him (ibid., v. 33).

It is taught that Rabbi said: What is the proper way for a man to react to the reproof of his neighbor? He should accept the rebuke, for as long as rebuke is accepted in the world, ease, goodness, and blessing will prevail as well, and evil will vanish from the world, as it is said: But to them that rebuke shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them (Prov. 24:25). That is, to the one who rebukes and to the one who is rebuked. Others say: He will be strengthened by his increased faith, as it is said: Mine eyes are upon the faithful of the land, and they may dwell with Me (Ps. 101:6).

R. Samuel the son of Nahmani said that R. Jonathan stated: Whoever rebukes his companion for religious reasons earns a share of divine grace, as it is said: He that rebuketh a man shall in the end find more favor (Prov. 28:23). And furthermore a thread of divine favors will be drawn about him, as is said: He shall find favor. Scripture says: Mine ordinance shall ye do (Lev. 18:4). These are ordinances which, if they were not enumerated in the Torah, ought to have been. Scripture is speaking here of idolatry and blasphemy. My statutes shall ye keep, to walk therein (ibid.). These are the commandments against which the evil inclination contends, and against which the peoples of the earth rebel. These are: the wearing of garments made of wool and linen, the eating of pig, the spittle of a childless sister-in-law, mixing seeds, stoning an ox for killing a human being, the heifer whose neck was broken, the bird sacrifice brought by a leper, a firstling of an ass, meat prepared in milk, and the goat that has been sent away (the scapegoat). You might maintain that these are unimportant prohibitions. Hence Scripture says: I am the Lord: I have decreed them, and you art not permitted to repudiate them.