The King's Son and the Single Day of Rejoicing Together

Rabbi Alexandri [told a parable] of a king to whom a joyous occasion had come. Throughout all seven days of the feast the king's son was busy with the guests, and when the seven days of the feast had passed, the king said to his son: My son, I know that throughout all seven days of the feast you were busy with the guests, and now let me and you rejoice together for one day, and I will not burden you with much, only one rooster and one pound of meat. So too, throughout all seven days of the feast Israel are occupied with the offerings of the nations of the world. For Rabbi Pinchas said: all those seventy bulls that Israel would offer on the Festival correspond to the seventy nations of the world, so that the world should not be emptied of them. What is the reason? "In return for my love they accuse me, but I am prayer" (Psalms 109:4) - we trust in prayer. And when the seven days of the Festival had passed, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel: My children, I know that throughout all seven days of the Festival you were occupied with the offerings of the nations of the world, and now let Me and you rejoice together, and I will not burden you with much, only one bull, one ram. And when Israel heard this, they began to praise the Holy One, blessed be He, and said, "This is the day the LORD has made; let us be glad and rejoice in it" (Psalms 118:24). Rabbi Abun said: we do not know in what to rejoice, whether in the day or in the Holy One, blessed be He. So Solomon came and explained, "Let us be glad and rejoice in You" (Song of Songs 1:4) - in You, in Your Torah; in You, in Your salvation. Rabbi Isaac said: in the twenty-two letters with which You wrote the Torah for us - bet is two, kaf is twenty [together, in "bach," "in You"].