The Storm-Tossed City Rebuilt in Sapphire and Light

Pesikta Rabbati 32:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"O afflicted one, storm-tossed, not comforted, behold, I will set your stones in fair colors and lay your foundations with sapphires" (Isaiah 54:11). Scripture says, "O sons of men, how long will you turn My glory into shame, will you love vanity and seek falsehood? But know that the LORD has set apart the pious man for Himself; the LORD hears when I call to Him" (Psalms 4:3-4). "Sons of men" refers to Doeg and Ahithophel. "How long will you turn My glory into shame" — how long do you scrutinize my honor and refuse to call me by my name, saying instead, "Why has the son of Jesse not come?" (1 Samuel 20:27). "You love vanity" — why do you chase after empty things, saying, "They have forsaken the Holy One, He has forgotten them, the kingship will not return to him"? "Seek falsehood; but know that the LORD has set apart the pious man for Himself" — He has already announced to me through Nathan the prophet, "The LORD has put away your sin; you shall not die" (2 Samuel 12:13). Another interpretation: "How long will you turn My glory into shame" refers to the nations of the world, called "sons of men" because they descend from Noah, "a righteous man" (Genesis 6:9). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to the nations: wicked ones, how long will My glory be shamed — this is the Temple, called "glory," as it says, "A throne of glory, exalted from the first, is the place of our sanctuary" (Jeremiah 17:12) — how long will you tear at it and set up images and idols within it? "You love vanity" — chasing empty things and saying, "They have forsaken the Holy One, He has forgotten them, the Shekhinah will not return there." But I have already announced through Isaiah, "O afflicted one, storm-tossed, not comforted, behold, I will set your stones in fair colors." Another interpretation: "afflicted" — afflicted of words of Torah, afflicted of commandments and good deeds, afflicted of the righteous; "storm-tossed" — stormed against by the nations of the world, as it says, "Remember, O LORD, against the sons of Edom the day of Jerusalem, who said, raze it, raze it, to the foundation in her" (Psalms 137:7). "Not comforted" — Rabbi Levi said: wherever Scripture says "she has none," she does in fact have. Of Zion it is written, "She has none seeking her" (Jeremiah 30:17); but in fact she does, as it is written, "And a redeemer shall come to Zion" (Isaiah 59:20). Of Sarah, "she has no child" (Genesis 11:30); but she did. So too, "Sing, O barren one who did not bear" (Isaiah 54:1); but she does, as it says, "And you shall say in your heart, who has borne me these?" (Isaiah 49:21). "And I will lay your foundations with sapphires." Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi was standing with Elijah on Mount Carmel and said, "Will you not show me those stones of kadkod, what they are like?" There is a story of a ship voyaging on the Great Sea, with a young Hebrew aboard, to whom Elijah appeared and said, "If you do my errand, I will save this ship for your sake." He said, "Go and show Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi those kadkod stones, but do not show them to him in the open; lead him to the cave of Lod and show them there." When the youth led him into the cave and showed them to him, all of Lod shone with their light. "And all your borders with precious stones" (Isaiah 54:12). Rabbi Yochanan sat and expounded: the Holy One is destined to make a great gate for the Temple, with two wickets of a single precious stone, of a single pearl. A certain man scoffed, "You cannot even find one the size of an egg now," and he went and sailed on the Great Sea, and his ship sank, and the Holy One opened his eyes and he saw the ministering angels there hewing and carving such a stone. He asked them, "For what is this?" They said, "For the great gate of the Temple." The next year he came and found Rabbi Yochanan expounding the same thing and said, "Expound, and well does it become you to expound; I would not have believed you had I not seen it with my own eyes." In the world to come, when a man owes his fellow and they go to be judged before the King Messiah, when they reach the border of Jerusalem they find it full of precious stones and pearls; he takes one and gives it to him, saying, "Do I owe you more than the value of this?" and the other says, "The King forgive you." This is the meaning of, "He makes peace in your borders" (Psalms 147:14).

Themes

RedemptionConsolationMessiah

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