Love of evil over good. David told Doeg to worry more about Saul's evil love than your goodness. For if you had not spoken evil of him, you would not have been punished. There is a person who lies and flatters someone who will feed and give him drink, but you, even though you were poor, were wise, strong, and rich, and head of the Sanhedrin, why did you act this way? (Jeremiah 9:22-23) Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, but let him who glories glory in this, etc. And this is nothing but Torah, as it is said (Deuteronomy 4:44), "And this is the Torah." (Jeremiah 9:23) Let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me.

And likewise it says (2 Samuel 8:15), "And David executed justice and righteousness." And it says (1 Samuel 18:14), "And David behaved wisely in all his ways." Rabbi Shimon Bar Abba said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan, the Holy One, blessed be He, showed Abraham the Torah, sacrifices, Gehinnom, and exile. Torah, from where do we know this?

As it is said (Genesis 15:17), "And a smoking oven and a burning torch." And there is no torch but Torah, as it is said (Exodus 20:15), "And all the people saw the thunderings and the lightnings." The burning oven is Gehinnom, as it is said (Malachi 3:19), "And he shall be like a flaming oven." And it is written (Isaiah 31:9), "Whose fire is in Zion."

Sacrifices (Genesis 15:9), "Take for Me a three-year-old heifer." Exile (ibid. 12:13), "And behold, a great darkness fell upon him." This darkness is Babylon. This obscurity is Greece.

This greatness falls on him, Edom. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Abraham, "The Temple will be destroyed, and the sacrifices that atoned for them will be abolished. What do you want your children to be subjected to in exile? Should they not be subjected to exile rather than Gehinnom?"

Rabbi Chanina bar Papa said, "Abraham chose for himself the exile, saying it is better for Israel to be in exile than to be in Gehinnom." And this is what the Holy One, blessed be He, says to Israel, "You are My furnace." And likewise it says (Isaiah 51:1), "Look to the rock from which you were hewn." This refers to Abraham, as it is said (ibid. 2), "Look to Abraham your father."