Yalkut Shimoni on Torah Reader

Philosophers asked the elders in Rome: If it is not the will of the Holy One, blessed be He, that there be other gods, why does He not abolish them? They said to them: If people worshiped something the world has no need of, He would abolish it. But behold, they worship the sun, the moon, the stars, and the constellations. Should He destroy His world on account of fools? They said to them: If so, let Him destroy the thing the world has no need of, and leave the thing the world does need. They said to them: If we did that, we would only strengthen the hands of those who worship these, for they would say, Know that these are divine, since these were not abolished while those were. A certain philosopher asked the elders in Rome: If it is not the will of the Holy One, blessed be He, that there be other gods, why does He not abolish them, and so forth. Should He destroy His world on account of fools? Rather, the world goes according to its custom, and the fools who corrupted themselves are destined to give an accounting.

Another interpretation: Consider one who stole a measure of wheat, then went and sowed it in the ground. By right it should not sprout. But the world goes according to its custom, and the fools who corrupted themselves are destined to give an accounting. So too one who comes upon his fellow's wife: by right she should not conceive. But the world goes according to its custom, and the fools who corrupted themselves are destined to give an accounting. This is what Resh Lakish said: The Holy One, blessed be He, said: It is not enough for the wicked that they make My coinage public and common, but they trouble Me and force Me, against My will, to seal it onto a transgression. A certain philosopher asked Rabban Gamliel: It is written, For I the LORD your God am a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). Why is He jealous of those who worship the idol, yet not jealous of the idol itself? He said to him: A parable. To what may this be compared? To a king of flesh and blood who had one son, and that son raised a dog and named it after his father, and whenever he swore he would say, By the life of the dog, my father. When the king hears this, is he angry at the son or angry at the dog? You must say he is angry at the son. He said to him: You call it a dog? But there is real substance in it! He said to him: What did you see in it? He said to him: Once a fire broke out in our city and the whole city burned, but the idol's temple did not burn. He said to him: I will offer you a parable. To what may this be compared? To a king of flesh and blood against whom a province rebelled. When he makes war, does he make it against the living or against the dead? You must say against the living. He said to him: You call it a dog, you call it dead? If so, let Him remove it from the world! He said to him: If they worshiped only a thing the world has no need of, He would destroy it. But behold, they worship the sun, the moon, the stars, the constellations, the streams, and the valleys. Should He destroy His world on account of fools? Rather, the world goes according to its custom, and so forth. And so it says, I will utterly consume all things from off the face of the ground, I will consume man and beast, I will consume the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, and the stumbling blocks together with the wicked (Zephaniah 1:2-3). Now, because the wicked stumble over them, should they be removed from the world? And so forth.

Agrippa the army commander asked Rabban Gamliel: It is written in the Torah, For I the LORD your God am a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). Does one grow jealous of anything except a wise man over a wise man, a strong man over a strong man, a rich man over a rich man? He said to him: I will offer you a parable. To what may this be compared? To a man who married a second wife alongside his first. If the second is more distinguished than the first, the first is not jealous of her; if she is lower than the first, the first is jealous of her. Zonin the elder said to Rabbi Akiva: My heart and your heart know that there is no real substance in idolatry; yet we see broken men go to it and come back made whole. He said to him: I will offer you a parable. To what may this be compared? To a trustworthy man in the world with whom all the people of his city would deposit goods without witnesses. One man came and deposited with him before witnesses. Once that man forgot and deposited without witnesses. The trustee's wife said to him: Come, let us deny it. He said to her: Because this fool acted this way, shall we destroy our faithfulness? So too the sufferings: when they are dispatched upon a person, they are made to swear that they will come only on such a day, by such a means, and through such a remedy. When the time comes for them to depart, the man goes to the house of his idol. The sufferings say: By right we should not depart. Then they reconsider and say: Because this fool acted improperly, shall we break our oath? This is what Rabbi Yochanan said: What is the meaning of the verse, and severe and lasting sicknesses (Deuteronomy 28:59)? Severe in their mission, and lasting [faithful] in their oath. Rabbah bar Rabbi Yitzchak said to Rabbi Yehudah: There is a house of fools in our place; when the world needs rain and no rain comes, they slaughter a man to it, and rain comes. He said to him: Were I now dead, I could not have told you this teaching, for Rav said: What is the meaning of the verse, which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples (Deuteronomy 4:19)? It teaches that He made them slip with smooth words in order to drive them from the world. And this is what Resh Lakish said: What is the meaning of the verse, Toward the scorners He is scornful, but to the humble He gives grace (Proverbs 3:34)? One who comes to defile himself, they open the way for him; one who comes to purify himself, they assist him.

Our Rabbis taught: Fathers shall not be put to death for sons (Deuteronomy 24:16). What does this come to teach? If it teaches that fathers shall not be put to death for the sin of sons, nor sons for the sin of fathers, it has already been said, every man shall be put to death for his own sin (Deuteronomy 24:16). Rather, Fathers shall not be put to death for sons means: by the testimony of sons. And are sons not punished for the sin of fathers? But is it not written, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons (Exodus 20:5)? That case is when they grasp the deeds of their fathers in their hands, as it was taught: and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them (Leviticus 26:39), meaning when they grasp the deeds of their fathers in their hands. Or is it perhaps even when they do not grasp them? When it says, every man shall be put to death for his own sin, you must conclude it is when they grasp the deeds of their fathers in their hands. And are they not? But is it not written, and they shall stumble one upon another (Leviticus 26:37), each man for the sin of his brother, which teaches that all Israel are sureties for one another? That case is where it was in their power to protest and they did not protest.

Rabbi Yose ben Rabbi Chanina said: Moses decreed four decrees upon Israel, and four prophets came and annulled them. Moses said, And Israel dwelt in safety alone, the fountain of Jacob (Deuteronomy 33:28). Amos came and annulled it, as it is said, O Lord GOD, how shall Jacob stand, for he is small? (Amos 7:2), and it is written, The LORD repented concerning this (Amos 7:3). Moses said, And among those nations you shall find no ease (Deuteronomy 28:65). Jeremiah came and annulled it, as it is said, going to give him rest, even Israel (Jeremiah 31:2). Moses said, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons (Exodus 20:5). Ezekiel came and annulled it, as it is said, The soul that sins, it shall die (Ezekiel 18:4). Moses said, And you shall perish among the nations (Leviticus 26:38). Isaiah came and annulled it, as it is said, And it shall come to pass on that day, that a great horn shall be blown (Isaiah 27:13).

Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons unto the third generation, and so forth (Exodus 20:5). Is this when they are not broken in sequence, or when they are broken in sequence? How so? A wicked man son of a wicked man. Rabbi Natan says: One who cuts off, son of one who cuts off. When Moses heard this thing, Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped (Exodus 34:8). He said: Heaven forbid that there be in Israel a wicked man son of a wicked man. Or, just as the measure of punishment extends to four generations, so does the measure of goodness? Scripture teaches, to thousands (Exodus 20:6). If to thousands, I might hear the smallest meaning of thousands, namely two. Scripture teaches, to a thousand generations (Deuteronomy 7:9), generations upon generations, beyond searching out and beyond number.

To those who love Me (Exodus 20:6): this is Abraham and those like him. And to those who keep My commandments (Exodus 20:6): these are the prophets and the elders. Rabbi Natan says: To those who love Me and keep My commandments, these are the ones who dwell in the Land of Israel and give their lives for the commandments. Why are you going out to be killed? Because I circumcised my son. Why are you going out to be burned? Because I read in the Torah. Why are you going out to be impaled? Because I ate unleavened bread. Why are you being given a hundred lashes with the whip? Because I took up the lulav. And it says, those with which I was wounded in the house of my lovers (Zechariah 13:6): these wounds caused me to be loved by my Father in heaven.

You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain (Exodus 20:7); (see Pesikta Rabbati there). Anyone who recites a blessing that is not needed transgresses on account of you shall not take in vain. When Rav Dimi came, he said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: I will eat and I will not eat, this is a false oath, and its prohibition is from you shall not swear by My name falsely (Leviticus 19:12). I ate and I did not eat, this is a vain oath, and its prohibition is from here: you shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain. As for vows of forbidding, one who violates them transgresses he shall not break his word (Numbers 30:3). They raised an objection: vain and false are one thing. Is it not that, just as vain refers to the past, false too refers to the past, so that I ate and I did not eat is false? No, this case is as it is and that case is as it is. And what is meant by they are one thing? That they were said in a single utterance, as it was taught: Remember and Keep were said in a single utterance, something the mouth cannot speak and the ear cannot hear. Granted there, they were said in a single utterance, as Rav Adda bar Ahavah said: women are obligated in the sanctification of the day by Torah law, for Scripture says Remember and Keep; whoever is included in keeping is included in remembering, and these women, since they are included in keeping, are also included in remembering. But here, for what law is it needed? Rather, just as one is flogged for a vain oath, so one is flogged for a false oath. That is obvious, this is a negative commandment and that is a negative commandment! Lest you say, as Rav Papa said to Abaye, He will not hold guiltless at all, it teaches us as he answered him. And if you wish, say: just as one brings a sacrifice for a false oath, so one brings a sacrifice for a vain oath, and this is the view of Rabbi Akiva, who holds one liable for the past as for the future. When Ravin came, he said in the name of Rabbi Yirmiyah in the name of Rabbi Abbahu in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: I ate and I did not eat is a matter of falsehood, and its prohibition is from you shall not swear by My name falsely. I will eat and I will not eat, one transgresses he shall not break his word. And which is the vain oath? One who swears to alter a known fact.

Rav Idi bar Avin said in the name of Rabbi Amram, who said in the name of Rabbi Yitzhak, who said in the name of Rabbi Yohanan: Rabbi Yehudah says in the name of Rabbi Yose the Galilean, every prohibition in the Torah that is a negative commandment involving an action, one is flogged for it; a negative commandment that does not involve an action, one is not flogged for it, except for one who swears falsely, one who exchanges a consecrated animal, and one who curses his fellow using the divine Name. From where do we learn the case of one who swears? Rabbi Yohanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai: Scripture says, "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not clear one who takes His name in vain" (Exodus 20:7). The court above does not clear him, but the court below flogs him and thereby clears him. Rav Pappa said to Abaye: Perhaps the Merciful One means it this way, that He will not clear him at all? He replied: If it were written "He will not clear," it would be as you say; but now that it is written "for the LORD will not clear," it is the LORD who does not clear him, yet the court below flogs him and clears him. We have found a source for the vain oath; from where do we learn the false oath? Rabbi Yohanan himself said: "in vain," "in vain" is written two times. If the second is not needed for the matter of the vain oath, apply it to the matter of the false oath, such as one who swears "I ate" when he did not eat. And why are they different? Rava said: Explicitly the Torah broadened the false oath to resemble the vain oath; just as the vain oath concerns the past, so too the false oath concerns the past.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain" (Exodus 20:7). For a vain oath one is liable to lashes when it is intentional, and exempt when it is unintentional. And what is a vain oath? One who swears to change a known fact: that a pillar of stone is gold, that a man is a woman, or that a woman is a man. One who swears about something impossible: "if I did not see a camel flying through the air," or "if I did not see a snake as thick as the beam of an olive press." One who says to witnesses, "Come and testify for me," and they reply, "We swear that we will not testify for you." And one who swears to nullify the commandments: not to make a sukkah, not to take up the lulav, not to put on tefillin.

Our rabbis taught: The oath imposed by judges may also be recited in any language. They say to the one taking it: Know that the entire world trembled at the hour when the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses at Sinai, "You shall not take the name" and so forth. Concerning every transgression in the Torah it says "and He clears," but here it says "for He will not clear." For every transgression in the Torah punishment is exacted from him alone, but here from him and from his family, as it says, "Do not let your mouth bring guilt upon your flesh" (Ecclesiastes 5:5), and "your flesh" means none other than relatives, as it says, "and from your own flesh do not hide yourself" (Isaiah 58:7). For every transgression in the Torah punishment is exacted from him alone, but here from him and from the whole world, as it says, "swearing and lying and murdering... therefore the land mourns" (Hosea 4:2-3). For every transgression in the Torah, if a person has merit, judgment is suspended two or three generations, but here punishment is exacted at once, as it says, "I have brought it forth, says the LORD... and it shall enter the house of the thief" (Zechariah 5:4): this is one who steals the mind of others, who has no money owed by his fellow yet claims it and makes him swear. "And the house of the one who swears falsely by My name": as it plainly means. "And it shall lodge in the midst of his house and consume it, its timber and its stones": from here you learn that things which fire and water do not consume, the vain oath consumes. If the man says, "I will not swear," they release him at once. If he says, "I am ready to swear," those standing there say, "Depart now from beside the tents" (Numbers 16:26) and so forth. When they impose the oath on him they say, "Know that we do not adjure you according to your own intent, but according to our intent and the intent of the court." So too we find with Moses our teacher: when he made Israel swear, he said to them, "Know that I do not adjure you according to your own intent, but according to my intent and the intent of the Omnipresent," as it says, "And not with you alone... but with whoever is here" (Deuteronomy 29:13-14). I have only those standing before Mount Sinai; from where do I include the coming generations and the converts destined to convert? Scripture says, "and whoever is not here." I have only the commandments accepted at Sinai; from where the commandments destined to be instituted, such as the reading of the Megillah, Hanukkah, and Purim? Scripture says, "the Jews confirmed and accepted" (Esther 9:27): they confirmed what they had already accepted upon themselves. The Master said: The oath imposed by judges may also be recited in any language. As we learned: These are recited in any language: the passage of the suspected wife, the confession over the tithe, the recitation of the Shema, the Amidah prayer, the grace after meals, the oath of testimony, and the oath concerning a deposit; and it states also that the judges' oath may be recited in any language. The Master said: The whole world trembled at "You shall not take," as the reason is taught: for every transgression in the Torah it says "and He clears," and here it says "He will not clear." But is it not written regarding all transgressions in the Torah as well "He will not clear"? That verse is needed for what was taught: Rabbi Elazar says, it is impossible to say "and He clears," since it already says "He will not clear," and it is impossible to say "He will not clear," since it already says "and He clears." How so? He clears those who repent and does not clear those who do not repent. And concerning all transgressions in the Torah, from him yes, from his family no? But is it not written, "And I will set My face against that man and against his family" (Leviticus 20:5)? And it was taught, Rabbi Shimon said: If he sinned, how did his family sin? Rather, there is no family containing a tax-collector in which they are not all tax-collectors, and no family containing a bandit in which they are not all bandits, because they shield him. There it is a different judgment, as was taught: Rabbi Eliezer says, "And I will set My face against that man and against his family": one might think the whole family is subject to excision; Scripture says "him": he is subject to excision, not the whole family. And concerning other transgressions, from the whole world no? But is it not written, "And they shall stumble, each man over his brother" (Leviticus 26:37), each man for the iniquity of his brother, teaching that all Israel are sureties for one another? There it is where they had the power to protest and did not; here even though they did not have the power to protest. What difference is there between the wicked of his family and the wicked of the world at large, and between the righteous of his family and the righteous of the world at large? For other transgressions, he is in his own judgment, the wicked of his family are in a severe judgment, and the wicked of the world at large are in the lenient judgment, and the righteous in both cases are exempt. Regarding the vain oath, he and the wicked of his family are in his judgment, the wicked of the world at large are in a severe judgment, and the righteous in both cases are in the lenient judgment. "And if he says, I am ready to swear, those standing there say, Depart now," and so forth. Granted that the one who swears falls under "depart," but the one who imposes the oath upon him, why? That verse is needed for what was taught: Rabbi Shimon ben Tarfon says, "An oath of the LORD shall be between the two of them" (Exodus 22:10), teaching that the oath falls upon both of them. And when they impose the oath on him they say, "Know that we do not adjure you according to your intent, but according to our intent and the intent of the court." Why must they say this? To exclude the case of Rava's reed.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain" (Exodus 20:7). The vain oath was also included in the general statement, as it says, "or a person who swears, uttering with the lips" (Leviticus 5:4), and yet Scripture singled it out from the general rule and was stringent with it, exempting it from the offering. I might say: just as it is exempt from the offering, so should it be exempt from lashes. Scripture therefore says, "You shall not take the name of the LORD": from the category of offering it departed, from the category of lashes it did not depart. "You shall not take the name of the LORD": why is it stated? Because it says, "and you shall not swear by My name falsely" (Leviticus 19:12). From that I know only that one may not swear; from where that one may not even accept upon himself to swear? Scripture says, "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God": until you have accepted to swear, I am a God to you; once you have accepted to swear, I am a judge to you. It is impossible to say "and He clears," since it already says "He will not clear," as above. Rabbi says: All that is from "You shall not take" and upward, repentance atones; from "You shall not take" and downward, and "You shall not take" with them, repentance suspends and the Day of Atonement atones. And what is from "You shall not take" and upward? The positive and negative commandments. From "You shall not take" and downward? Matters for which one is liable to death by the court, death at the hands of Heaven, excision at the hands of Heaven, the forty lashes, sin-offerings and guilt-offerings, and "You shall not take" is among them. "Remember" (Exodus 20:8) and "Keep" (Deuteronomy 5:12), the two were spoken in a single utterance. "Those who profane it shall surely be put to death" (Exodus 31:14) and "and on the Sabbath day two lambs" (Numbers 28:9), the two were spoken in a single utterance. "The nakedness of your brother's wife" (Leviticus 18:16) and "her brother-in-law shall come upon her" (Deuteronomy 25:5), the two in a single utterance. "You shall not wear shaatnez" (Deuteronomy 22:11) and "you shall make for yourself twisted fringes" (Deuteronomy 22:12), the two in a single utterance. "And every daughter who inherits a portion from the tribes of the children of Israel" (Numbers 36:8) and "so that no inheritance shall move from tribe to tribe" (Numbers 36:9), spoken in a single utterance, something it is impossible for flesh and blood to say, as it says, "One thing God has spoken, two things have I heard" (Psalms 62:12), "Is not My word like fire, says the LORD" (Jeremiah 23:29). "Remember" and "Keep": remember it from before and keep it from after. From here they said: we add from the profane onto the holy. A parable of a wolf that tears from before and from behind. Elazar ben Hananiah ben Hizkiah ben Guryon says: you shall remember it from the first day of the week, so that if a fine object comes your way you may set it aside for the sake of the Sabbath. Rabbi Yohanan says: do not count the days as others count, but count them for the sake of the Sabbath. "To sanctify it," with a blessing. From here they said: we sanctify over wine at its entrance. I have only the sanctification by day; from where the sanctification by night? Scripture says, "and you shall keep the Sabbath" (Exodus 31:14). I have only the Sabbath; from where the festivals? Scripture says, "these are the appointed times of the LORD" (Leviticus 23:4).

Our rabbis taught: "Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it" (Exodus 20:8), remember it over wine at its entrance. I have only the night; from where the day? Scripture says, "Remember the day." Rav Aha bar Yaakov said: One must mention the exodus from Egypt in the sanctification of the day. It is written here, "so that you may remember" (Deuteronomy 16:3), and it is written there, "Remember the Sabbath day."

(Exodus 20:9) "Six days you shall labor and do all your work." But is it possible for a person to do all his work in six days? Rather, rest as though all your work were done.

Another interpretation: Rest from the very thought of labor, and it says, "If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath... then you shall delight" (Isaiah 58:13-14). (Exodus 20:10) "And the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God." Why is it stated? Because it says, "whoever does work on the Sabbath day shall surely be put to death" (Exodus 31:15). We have heard the punishment, but we have not heard the warning. Therefore Scripture says, "and the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God." Since there is no need for Scripture to say "Sabbath," it comes only to bring the night into the category of the warning.

Rav Aha bar Yoshiyah says: "You and your son and your daughter," these are the minor children. Or is it only the grown children? You say, but they are already commanded. So what does Scripture teach by "you and your son and your daughter"? These are the minor children. "Your manservant and your maidservant," these are those within the covenant. Or is it only an uncircumcised slave? When it says, "that the son of your maidservant and the stranger may be refreshed" (Exodus 23:12), the uncircumcised slave is already mentioned. So what does Scripture teach by "your manservant and your maidservant"? These are those within the covenant. "And your stranger," this is the righteous convert. Or is it only the resident alien? When it says "and the stranger," the resident alien is already mentioned. So what does Scripture teach by "and your stranger"? This is the righteous convert. (Exodus 20:11) "For in six days" and so forth: this tells that it was weighed against all the works of creation. "And He rested on the seventh day": but is there weariness before Him? Has it not already been said, "Do you not know, have you not heard... He gives strength to the weary" (Isaiah 40:28-29), and "By the word of the LORD the heavens were made" (Psalms 33:6)? What then does Scripture teach by "and He rested on the seventh day"? Rather, as it were, He wrote concerning Himself that He created His world in six days and rested on the seventh. And these things are an inference from minor to major: if the One before whom there is no weariness wrote concerning Himself that He created His world in six days and rested on the seventh, then a human being, of whom it is written, "man is born to toil" (Job 5:7), how much more so. "Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and sanctified it." "He blessed it" with manna, and "sanctified it" with a blessing, the words of Rabbi Yishmael. Rabbi Akiva says: "He blessed it" with manna and "sanctified it" with the luminaries. Rabbi Shimon ben Yehudah of Kfar Akko says in the name of Rabbi Shimon: "He blessed it" with manna and "sanctified it" with the light of a person's face. "Therefore the LORD blessed," and so forth.

"Honor your father and your mother" (Exodus 20:12). Our Rabbis taught: It says "Honor your father," and it says "Honor the LORD from your wealth" (Proverbs 3:9). Scripture thus equated the honor of father and mother to the honor of the Omnipresent. It says "Each of you shall fear his mother and his father" (Leviticus 19:3), and it says "You shall fear the LORD your God" (Deuteronomy 6:13). Scripture thus equated the fear of father and mother to the fear of the Omnipresent. It says "One who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death" (Exodus 21:17), and it says "A man who curses his God" (Leviticus 24:15). Scripture thus equated the cursing of father and mother to the cursing of the Omnipresent. But concerning striking it is not possible [to equate them, for one may not strike God], and this is reasonable, because the three of them are partners in him. Our Rabbis taught: There are three partners in a person, the Holy One, blessed be He, his father, and his mother. When a person honors his father and his mother, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: I credit it to them as though I dwelt among them and they honored Me. And when a person grieves his father and his mother, the Holy One, blessed be He, says: I did well that I did not dwell among them, for had I dwelt among them they would have grieved Me. It was taught, Rabbi says: It is revealed and known before the One who spoke and the world came into being that a son honors his mother more than his father, because she coaxes him with words; therefore Scripture placed the honor of the father before the honor of the mother. The son of a widow asked Rabbi Eliezer: My father says, "Give me water to drink," and my mother says, "Give me water to drink"; which of them comes first? He said to him: Set aside the honor of your mother and perform the honor of your father, for you and your mother are both obligated in the honor of your father. He came before Rabbi Yehoshua, who said to him the same. He asked: If she is divorced, what then? He said to him: From between your eyelashes it is evident that you are a widow's son; throw them water in a basin and let them squawk for it like roosters. They asked Rabbi Eliezer: How far does the honor of father and mother extend? He said to them: Go out and see what a certain gentile did for his father in Ashkelon, and Dama ben Netina was his name. Once they sought from him stones for the ephod at a profit of six hundred thousand (and Rav Kahana taught: eight hundred thousand), and the key was lying under his father's head, and he would not disturb him. The next year the Holy One, blessed be He, gave him his reward: a red heifer was born in his herd. The sages of Israel came in to him. He said to them: I know about you that if I ask of you all the money in the world you would give it to me; but now I ask of you only that money which I lost on account of my father. Rabbi Chanina said: If one who is not commanded yet does so acts thus, how much more so one who is commanded and does it. When Rav Dimi came he said: Once he was dressed in a garment of gold woven cloth and was sitting among the great men of Rome, and his mother came and tore it off him and slapped him on the head and spat in his face, and he did not shame her. Avimi the son of Rabbi Abbahu taught: There is one who feeds his father pheasant and drives him from the world, and there is one who grinds him at the mill and brings him to the life of the World to Come. Rabbi Abbahu said: For example, my son Avimi fulfilled the commandment of honor. Avimi had five ordained sons, and when his father came and called at the door he himself would run and go open it for him, saying "Yes, yes," until he reached there. One day his father said to him, "Give me water to drink"; by the time he brought it, the father had dozed off. He bent over and stood above him until he awoke. The matter aided him, and Avimi expounded "A Psalm of Asaph" (Psalms 79). Rabbi Tarfon had an aged mother, and whenever she wished to climb onto her bed he would bend down and let her climb upon him, and when she came down she came down upon him. He went and was boasting of this in the study hall. They said to him: You have not yet reached half of the honor due. Has she ever thrown your purse into the sea and you did not shame her? Rav Yosef, when he would hear the sound of his mother's footstep, would say: Let me rise before the Divine Presence that is coming. Rabbi Yochanan said: Happy is one who has never seen them [his parents, for he is spared the impossibility of honoring them fully]. Our Rabbis taught: He honors him in his lifetime, he honors him in his death. In his lifetime, how? One who is sent on his father's business to a place should not say "Send me for my own sake, hurry me for my own sake, release me for my own sake," but rather all of it "for my father's sake." In his death, how? When he reports a teaching in his father's name, he should not say "Thus said my father," but rather "Thus said my father my master, may I be an atonement for his resting place." This applies within twelve months; from then on he says "his memory is for the life of the World to Come." Our Rabbis taught: What is fear and what is honor? Fear: he does not stand in his place, nor sit in his place, nor contradict his words, nor decide against him. Honor: he feeds and gives him drink, clothes and covers him, brings him in and takes him out. If his father was transgressing words of Torah, he should not say to him "Father, you have transgressed words of Torah," but rather he should say to him "Father, a verse is written in the Torah thus." Elazar ben Matya says: If my father says "Give me water to drink" and there is a commandment to perform, I set aside the honor of my father and perform the commandment, for both my father and I are obligated in the commandment. Issi ben Yehudah says: If it is possible to perform it through others, let it be performed through others; and the law follows Issi ben Yehudah. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai says: Great is the honor of father and mother, for the Omnipresent preferred it even over His own honor. It says "Honor the LORD from your wealth" (Proverbs 3:9): one separates gleanings, forgotten sheaves, and the corner of the field; one separates priestly portion, first tithe, poor tithe, and dough offering; one makes a sukkah, a lulav, a shofar, fringes; one feeds the hungry and gives drink to the thirsty. If you have means you are obligated in all of them, and if you have no means you are not obligated in even one of them. But when it comes to honoring father and mother, whether you have means or not, "Honor your father and your mother," even if you must go around begging at doors. Rabbi Yannai and Rabbi Yonatan were sitting. A certain man came and kissed the feet of Rabbi Yonatan. Rabbi Yannai said to him: What good thing has he done for you? He said to him: Once he complained to me that his son would not support him, and I said to him, Cry out about him in the synagogue and shame him. He said to him: And why did you not compel him? He said to him: And does one compel? He said to him: Yes, one compels a son to support the father.

"Honor your father and your mother." I might hear that this is with words. Scripture teaches, saying "Honor the LORD from your wealth" (Proverbs 3:9): with food and drink and with clean clothing.

Another interpretation: "Honor your father and your mother" — why is it stated? Because it says "Any man who curses his father" and so forth; from this I would know only a man. A woman, a person of indeterminate sex, and a person of double sex, from where? Scripture teaches, "Honor your father and your mother," in every case. Just as concerning honor it made no distinction between a man and a woman, a person of indeterminate sex, and a person of double sex, so too concerning fear you shall make no distinction between a man, a woman, a person of indeterminate sex, and a person of double sex. These are the words of Rabbi Yishmael. Rabbi Yehudah ben Beteira says: It says "Each of you shall fear his mother and his father" (Leviticus 19:3), and it says "and keep My Sabbaths" and so forth. Just as concerning the Sabbath it made no distinction between a man and a woman, a person of indeterminate sex, and a person of double sex, so too concerning fear you shall make no distinction between a man, a woman, a person of indeterminate sex, and a person of double sex. "Honor your father": I might think that whoever comes first in the verse comes first in deed. Scripture teaches, "Each of you shall fear his mother and his father" (Leviticus 19:3), that the two of them are equal one to the other. "That your days may be long": if you honor him, your days will be long, and if not, your days will be shortened, for words of Torah are read by notarikon [the implied inverse], since words of Torah are derived from the implication of a positive — its negative, and from the implication of a negative — its positive [a stated reward implies the opposite penalty for its neglect]. "Upon the land which the LORD your God gives you": from here they said, any commandment whose reward is stated beside it — the earthly court is not commanded to enforce it.

Rava raised a contradiction to Rav Nachman: We learned, these are the matters whose fruits a person eats in this world while the principal remains for him in the World to Come: honoring father and mother, acts of loving-kindness, visiting the sick, and bringing peace between a person and his fellow, and the study of Torah is equal to them all. Concerning honoring father and mother it is written "that your days may be long"; concerning acts of loving-kindness it is written "One who pursues righteousness and kindness" and so forth (Proverbs 21:21); concerning bringing peace it is written "Seek peace and pursue it," and "pursuit" is derived from "pursuit"; concerning the study of Torah it is written "for it is your life and the length of your days" (Deuteronomy 30:20). And let it also teach the sending away of the mother bird, of which it is written "that it may go well with you and you may prolong your days" (Deuteronomy 22:7). Sending away the nest is good toward Heaven but is not good toward people, while it is written "Say of the righteous one that it is good" (Isaiah 3:10), good toward Heaven and good toward people. It is written "Lest you weigh the path of life" (Proverbs 5:6). Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: That you should not sit and weigh the commandments of the Torah, seeing which commandment's reward is great and doing that one. Why? "Her ways wander, you cannot know" (Proverbs 5:6) — the paths of the Torah are shifted about. Rabbi Chiyya taught a parable: like a king who had an orchard and brought workers into it but did not reveal to them the wages for its plantings. For had he revealed it to them, they would have seen which planting's wage was great and planted only that, and the work of the orchard would be partly idle and partly maintained. So too, had He revealed the reward of the commandments, the Torah would be found partly idle and partly maintained. Rav Acha said in the name of Rabbi Abba bar Kahana: The Holy One, blessed be He, shifted about the reward of those who do the commandments in this world so that Israel would do it whole. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai taught: Two commandments in the Torah the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed their reward, and these are they: the lightest of the light and the weightiest of the weighty. The lightest of the light: "You shall surely send away the mother" and so forth — and just for a matter that is the repayment of a debt [costing nothing], such reward; how much more for a matter that involves loss of money and loss of life. And just as their reward is equal, so is their punishment equal, as it says "The eye that mocks a father and scorns to obey a mother" (Proverbs 30:17) — an eye that mocked the honor of father and mother and despised "You shall not take the mother with the young" (Deuteronomy 22:6) — "the ravens of the valley will pluck it out and the young eagles will eat it" (Proverbs 30:17): this one pecks and this one eats. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Let the raven, who is cruel to its young, come and peck it out and not benefit from it, and let the eagle, who is merciful to its young, come and benefit from them. And from where do we know the raven is cruel to its young? As it says "Who prepares for the raven its food?" and it says "to the young ravens who cry" (Psalms 147:9). For when the raven begets white young, the male says to the female, "Another bird has come upon you," and they abandon them. What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He brings forth gnats from their droppings, and they fly upon them and eat, and from there they turn black. And from where do we know the eagle is merciful? As it says "As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovering over its young" (Deuteronomy 32:11). And from where do we know it benefits from them? As it says "it spreads its wings and takes him" (Deuteronomy 32:11). And just as the punishment is great, so the reward is great, as it says "that your days may be long." It was taught, Rabbi Yaakov says: There is not a single commandment written in the Torah whose reward is stated beside it that does not have the resurrection of the dead dependent upon it, as it says "that your days may be long" — in the world that is wholly long; and "that it may go well with you" — in the world that is wholly good. Concerning sending away the nest it is written "that it may go well with you and you may prolong your days" (Deuteronomy 22:7). Consider one whose father said to him, "Climb the tower and bring me young birds," and he climbed and sent away the mother and took the young, and on his way down he fell and died. Where is the well-being of this one, and where is the length of days of this one? Rather, "that it may go well with you" — in the world that is wholly good; "that your days may be long" — in the world that is wholly long. And perhaps it never happened so? Rabbi Yaakov saw such a case. But did not Rava say that those engaged in a commandment are not harmed? There it was a rickety ladder, where the danger was fixed, and one does not rely on a miracle, as it is written "And Samuel said, How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me" (1 Samuel 16:2).

(Exodus 20:13-14) "You shall not murder" — why is it stated? Because it says "One who sheds the blood of man" and so forth (Genesis 9:6): we have heard the punishment, but we have not heard the prohibition. Scripture teaches, saying "You shall not murder." "You shall not commit adultery" — why is it stated? Because it says "The adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death" (Leviticus 20:10): we have heard the punishment, but we have not heard the prohibition. Scripture teaches, saying "You shall not commit adultery."

The school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: "You shall not commit adultery" — there shall not be adultery in you, whether by hand or by foot. Rabbi Elazar said: What is the meaning of what is written, "Your hands are full of blood" (Isaiah 1:15)? These are those who commit adultery by hand. "You shall not steal" — from where do we derive the prohibition against one who steals a person? Rabbi Yoshiyah says: From "You shall not steal." Rabbi Yonatan says: From "They shall not be sold as a slave is sold" (Leviticus 25:42). And they do not disagree: one reckons the prohibition of stealing, and the other reckons the prohibition of selling. It was taught: "You shall not steal" — Scripture speaks of one who steals a person. Or is it only one who steals money? You say: Go out and learn from the thirteen principles by which the Torah is interpreted — a matter learned from its context: about what is Scripture speaking? About lives [souls, the prohibitions of murder and adultery beside it]; so here too it speaks of lives.

"You shall not steal" — why is it stated? Because it says "One who steals a man and sells him" (Exodus 21:16): we have heard the punishment, but we have not heard the prohibition. Scripture teaches, saying "You shall not steal"; this then is the prohibition against one who steals a person. Go out and learn from the thirteen principles and so forth. And further, Rabbi said: Three commandments are stated in this matter, two explicit and one undefined. We learn the undefined from the explicit: just as the explicit ones are commandments for which one is liable to death by the court, so too the undefined one is a commandment for which one is liable to death by the court.

"You shall not bear false witness" — why is it stated? Because it says "You shall do to him as he conspired to do to his brother" (Deuteronomy 19:19): we have heard the punishment, but we have not heard the prohibition. Scripture teaches, saying "You shall not bear false witness."

Our Rabbis taught: We testify that so-and-so is liable to forty lashes, and they were found to be scheming [conspiring] witnesses. They receive eighty lashes, on account of "You shall not bear false witness" and on account of "You shall do to him as he schemed to do" (Deuteronomy 19:19); these are the words of Rabbi Meir. But the Sages say, they receive only forty. As for the Rabbis, what do they derive from this verse "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor"? A warning against scheming witnesses. And Rabbi Meir, from where does he derive the warning against scheming witnesses? He derives it from "And those who remain shall hear and fear" (Deuteronomy 19:20). And the Rabbis? That verse they need for the public proclamation. And Rabbi Meir? The proclamation is derived from "shall hear and fear." How were the Ten Commandments given? Five on one tablet and five on the other tablet. It is written "I am the LORD your God," and opposite it "You shall not murder." Scripture tells you that whoever sheds blood, Scripture reckons it to him as though he diminished the divine likeness. A parable: a king of flesh and blood who entered a province, and they set up busts of him and made images of him and struck coins with his likeness. After a time they overturned his busts, broke his images, and invalidated his coins, and so diminished the likeness of the king. So too whoever sheds blood, Scripture reckons it to him as though he diminished the likeness, as it is said "Whoever sheds the blood of man" and so forth, and it is written "for in the image of God He made man" (Genesis 9:6). It is written "You shall have no other gods," and opposite it "You shall not commit adultery." Scripture tells you that whoever worships idols, Scripture reckons it to him as though he committed adultery against the Omnipresent, as it is said "the adulterous wife" and so forth (Ezekiel 16:32), and "The LORD said to me: Go again, love a woman" and so forth (Hosea 3:1). It is written "You shall not take [the LORD's name in vain]" (verse 7), and opposite it is written "You shall not steal." Scripture tells you that whoever steals will in the end come to swear falsely, as it is said "Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely?" (Jeremiah 7:9), and it says "Swearing and lying and murdering" (Hosea 4:2). It is written "Remember the Sabbath day," and opposite it "You shall not bear false witness." Scripture tells you that whoever profanes the Sabbath testifies before the Holy One, blessed be He, that He did not create His world in six days and did not rest on the seventh day; and whoever keeps the Sabbath testifies before the Omnipresent that He created His world in six days and rested on the seventh, as it is said "You are My witnesses, says the LORD, and I am God" (Isaiah 43:12). It is written "Honor your father" (verse 12), and opposite it is written "You shall not covet." Scripture tells you that whoever covets will in the end beget a son who curses his own father and honors one who is not his father. Therefore the Ten Commandments were given five on this tablet and five on that tablet. [And the Sages say: ten on this tablet and ten on that tablet,] as it is said "These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly" and so forth (Deuteronomy 5:19), and it says "Your two breasts are like two fawns" (Song of Songs 4:5), and it says "His hands are rods of gold" and so forth (Song of Songs 5:14). One verse says "You shall not covet," and another verse says "You shall not desire" (Deuteronomy 5:18). How can these two verses be reconciled? This is a warning even against one who only schemes to follow after the object of his craving.

"You shall not covet your neighbor's house" is a general statement; "his manservant, his maidservant, his ox, or his donkey" is a specification. With a general statement followed by a specification, the general includes only what is in the specification. When it then says "or anything that is your neighbor's," it generalizes again. With a general statement, then a specification, then a general statement, you may infer only things like the specification: just as the specification refers explicitly to something one can buy and sell, so too anything one can buy and sell. Or perhaps: just as the specification refers explicitly to movable property that has no fixed security [is not real estate], so too I should include only movable property that has no fixed security? When it says in Deuteronomy "his field" (Deuteronomy 5:18), it shows: just as the specification refers explicitly to something one can buy and sell, so too anything one can buy and sell. Or perhaps: just as the specification refers explicitly to something that can come into your possession only with the owner's consent, so too I should include only something that can come into your possession only with the owner's consent. This excludes a case where you covet his daughter for your son, or his son for your daughter; or even where one covets merely in speech. The verse therefore teaches "You shall not covet the silver and gold that is on them and take it for yourself" (Deuteronomy 7:25): just as there the prohibition applies only when one performs an act, so too here it applies only when one performs an act.

"And all the people saw the voices" (Exodus 20:15). Rabbi Yehudah says: when a person speaks with his fellow he hears the sound of his voice but does not see its light; but Israel heard the voice of the Holy One, blessed be He, and saw the voice going forth from the mouth of the Almighty in lightning and thunder, as it is said "And all the people saw the voices." Rabbi Pinchas says: that entire generation who heard the voice of the Holy One, blessed be He, merited to be like the ministering angels. No kind of vermin had power over them, and at their death no worm had power over them. Happy are they in this world and in the world to come; concerning them Scripture says "Happy is the people for whom it is so" (Psalms 144:15).

"And all the people saw the voices" (Exodus 20:15). They saw what could be seen and heard what could be heard. They saw a thing of fire going forth from the mouth of the Almighty and being hewn upon the tablets, as it is said "The voice of the LORD hews flames of fire" (Psalms 29:7). "And all the people saw the voices": a voice, voices of voices; and a torch, torches of torches. How many voices were there, and how many torches were there? Rather, He made each person hear according to his own strength, as it is said "The voice of the LORD is in power, the voice of the LORD is in majesty" and so forth (Psalms 29:4). Rabbi says: to make known the praise of Israel, for when they all stood before Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, they would hear the utterance and interpret it, as it is said "He encircled him, He instructed him, He kept him as the apple of His eye" (Deuteronomy 32:10); for as soon as the utterance went forth, they would interpret it. And to make known the praise of Israel when they all stood before Mount Sinai to receive the Torah: there were no blind ones among them, as it is said "And all the people saw." This teaches there were no mute ones among them, as it is said "And all the people answered" (Exodus 19:8). This teaches there were no deaf ones among them, as it is said "All that the LORD has spoken we will do and we will hear" (Exodus 24:7). This teaches there were no lame ones among them, as it is said "And they stationed themselves at the foot of the mountain" (Exodus 19:17). This teaches there were no fools among them, as it is said "You have been shown" and so forth (Deuteronomy 4:35). Rabbi Natan says: from where do you say that the Omnipresent showed our father Abraham Gehinnom, and the giving of the Torah, and the splitting of the Sea of Reeds? As it is said "And behold, a smoking furnace" (Genesis 15:17), this is Gehinnom, as it is said "Behold, the day comes, burning like a furnace" (Malachi 3:19); "and a torch of fire" (Genesis 15:17), this is the giving of the Torah, as it is said "And all the people saw the voices and the torches"; "which passed between those pieces," this is the splitting of the Sea of Reeds, as it is said "To Him who cut the Sea of Reeds into pieces" (Psalms 136:13). "And the people saw and they trembled" (Exodus 20:15): "trembling" everywhere means only quaking, as it is said "The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard" (Isaiah 24:20). "And they stood far off," beyond twelve mil. This tells that Israel recoiled backward twelve mil and returned forward twelve mil, that is twenty-four mil for each and every utterance, so that they traveled on that day two hundred and forty mil. At that hour the Holy One, blessed be He, said to the ministering angels: Go down and assist your brothers, as it is said "The kings of hosts flee, they flee" (Psalms 68:13); they fled in the going and they fled in the returning. And not only the ministering angels, but even the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said "His left hand is under my head" (Song of Songs 2:6). Rabbi Yehudah son of Rabbi Ilai says: because Israel were inflamed by the fire of above, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to the clouds of glory: Drip the dew of life upon My children, as it is said "O LORD, when You went forth from Seir" and so forth (Judges 5:4), and it says "You poured down a generous rain" and so forth (Psalms 68:10). When was all this glory done? At the hour when the fairest of the nations of the world was honoring the Torah, as it is said "and she who tarries at home divides the spoil" (Psalms 68:13), and "spoil" means only Torah, as it is said "I rejoice over Your word" and so forth (Psalms 119:162).

"And they said to Moses: You speak with us and we will hear" (Exodus 20:16). This tells that they had the strength to receive only the Ten Commandments, as it is said "If we hear any more" and so forth (Deuteronomy 5:22), "I will not hear again the voice" and so forth, but rather "You go near and hear" (Deuteronomy 5:24). From that hour Israel merited that prophets would be raised up from among them, as it is said "I will raise up a prophet for them" (Deuteronomy 18:18): a prophet I am destined to raise up from among them; but they anticipated it by their own merit, as it is said "And the LORD said to me: They have done well" and so forth (Deuteronomy 18:17). Happy are people whose words the Omnipresent affirmed. And so it says "And the LORD said: I have pardoned according to your word" (Numbers 14:20). And so it says "The daughters of Zelophehad speak rightly" (Numbers 27:7), "The tribe of the sons of Joseph speak rightly" (Numbers 36:5). "Who would give that they had such a heart" (Deuteronomy 5:26): were it possible to remove the angel of death I would remove him, but the decree has already been decreed. Rabbi Yose says: on this condition Israel stood before Mount Sinai, that the angel of death should have no power over them, as it is said "I said, you are godlike beings" and so forth (Psalms 82:6); you ruined your deeds, "yet you shall die like men" (Psalms 82:7). "And they said to Moses: You speak with us": the Holy One, blessed be He, heard the voice of Israel and it was pleasing to Him. He sent for Michael and Gabriel, and they seized Moses by his two hands against his will and brought him near to the thick darkness, as it is said "And Moses drew near to the thick darkness" (Exodus 20:18). It is not written here "he approached" but "he was drawn near."

"And Moses said to the people: Do not fear" (Exodus 20:17). Here Moses encourages them, to make known the wisdom of Moses, how he stood and pacified all those thousands and all those myriads. Concerning him it is explained in the tradition [Writings] "Wisdom strengthens the wise" and so forth (Ecclesiastes 7:19). "For God has come in order to test you": in order to make you great among the nations, like a banner of a ship. "And so that the fear of Him may be upon your faces": it is a good sign in a person that he is bashful. "So that you do not sin": this tells that shame brings one to the fear of sin, as it is said "They acted shamefully, for they committed an abomination, yet they were not at all ashamed" (Jeremiah 6:15). It was taught: "And so that the fear of Him may be upon your faces, so that you do not sin" refers to shame; this teaches that shame brings one to the fear of sin. From here they said: it is a fine sign in a person that he is bashful. Others say: anyone who feels shame will not readily sin, and whoever has no shame upon his face, it is known that his ancestors did not stand at Mount Sinai.

"And the people stood far off, but Moses drew near" (Exodus 20:18). From the Place [or: from the House of Choosing, the future Temple site] it was spoken with him, as you say "And he saw the place from afar" (Genesis 22:4). This teaches that he entered a place where the ministering angels have no permission to enter, as it is said "And Moses drew near to the thick darkness." And so Solomon said "The LORD said that He would dwell in the thick darkness" (I Kings 8:12). And so it says "And he was there with the LORD" (Exodus 34:28).

"And the people stood far off" (Exodus 20:18): this is twelve mil. This tells that the camp of Israel was twelve mil, and so it says "And they camped by the Jordan from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim" (Numbers 33:49), and that is twelve mil.

"And Moses drew near to the thick darkness" (Exodus 20:18). What enabled him to do so? His humility, as it is said, "Now the man Moses was very humble" and so on (Numbers 12:3). Scripture tells us that whoever is humble will in the end cause the Divine Presence to dwell with a person on the earth, as it is said, "For thus says the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit" (Isaiah 57:15). And it says, "The spirit of the LORD God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good tidings to the humble" (Isaiah 61:1). And it says, "For all these things My hand has made, and so all these things came to be, says the LORD; but to this man will I look, to him who is poor and of a contrite spirit" (Isaiah 66:2); "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit" (Psalms 51:19). But whoever is haughty of heart causes the land to be defiled and the Divine Presence to depart, as it is said, "Him who has a haughty look and a proud heart I cannot endure" (Psalms 101:5). And everyone who is haughty of heart is called an abomination, as it is said, "Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD" (Proverbs 16:5). And one who worships idols is called an abomination, as it is said, "You shall not bring an abomination into your house" (Deuteronomy 7:26). Just as idolatry defiles the land and drives away the Divine Presence, so too whoever is haughty of heart causes the land to be defiled and the Divine Presence to depart. "And Moses drew near to the thick darkness" (Exodus 20:18): within three partitions, darkness, cloud, and thick darkness; darkness on the outside, cloud within, and thick darkness in the innermost place, as it is said, "And Moses drew near to the thick darkness" and so on.

"And the LORD said to Moses: Thus you shall say to the children of Israel" (Exodus 20:19): in the very language in which I speak to you, thus you shall speak to the children of Israel, in the holy tongue. Wherever the words "thus," "so," "answering," or "saying" are used, it is in the holy tongue. "You yourselves have seen": there is a difference between a person seeing for himself and others reporting to him; when others report to him, sometimes his heart is divided, but here, you yourselves have seen. Rabbi Nathan says: Why is "you yourselves have seen" stated? Because it says, "All the kings of the earth shall give You thanks, O LORD, for they have heard the words of Your mouth" (Psalms 138:4). One might think that just as they heard, so they saw; therefore Scripture teaches "you yourselves have seen", and the nations of the world did not see. "For from heaven I have spoken with you" (this is written at the verse "And the LORD descended upon Mount Sinai"). "You shall not make with Me" (Exodus 20:20): Rabbi Ishmael says, you shall not make the likeness of My ministers who serve before Me on high, nor the likeness of My angels, nor the likeness of the cherubim, nor the likeness of the ophanim. Rabbi Nathan says, "You shall not make with Me", that you should not say, behold I will make a sort of likeness and bow down to it; therefore Scripture teaches "You shall not make with Me", and likewise it says, "Take good heed to yourselves, for you saw no manner of form" (Deuteronomy 4:15). Rabbi Akiva says, "You shall not make with Me", that you should not treat Me the way others treat their gods: when good comes upon them, they honor their gods, as it is said, "Therefore he sacrifices to his net" (Habakkuk 1:16), and when calamity comes upon them, they curse their gods, as it is said, "And it shall come to pass, that when they are hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king" (Isaiah 8:21). But you, if I bring good upon you, give thanks; and if I bring sufferings upon you, give thanks. And so David said, "I will lift up the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD" (Psalms 116:13); "I found trouble and sorrow, then I called upon the name of the LORD" (Psalms 116:3-4). And so Job said, "The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD" (Job 1:21), over the measure of good and over the measure of calamity. And so Job's wife said, "Do you still hold fast to your integrity?" and what does he say to her: "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks" (Job 2:9-10). The men of the generation of the Flood and the men of Sodom, who were ugly in prosperity, when calamity came upon them received it against their will; but we, who were pleasant in prosperity, let us not be unpleasant in calamity. Moreover, let a person rejoice in sufferings more than in the good, for even if a person is in prosperity all his days, he is not pardoned for the transgressions in his hand. And who pardons him? You must say: sufferings. Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob says, behold it says, "My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD" (Proverbs 3:11), and why? "For whom the LORD loves He corrects" and so on (Proverbs 3:12). You may say: Go out and see what caused the son to find favor with the father. You must say: this is sufferings.

Rabbi Meir says: "And you shall consider in your heart, that as a man chastens his son, so the LORD your God chastens you" (Deuteronomy 8:5), let your heart know the deeds that you have done and the sufferings that I have brought upon you, that I did not bring the sufferings upon you according to your deeds. Rabbi Jonathan says: Beloved are sufferings, for just as a covenant is sealed for the land, so a covenant is sealed for sufferings, as it is said, "The LORD your God chastens you," and it says, "For the LORD your God brings you into a good land" (Deuteronomy 8:7). Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai says: Beloved are sufferings, for three good gifts were given to Israel which the nations of the world covet, and they were given only through sufferings, and these are: the Torah, the Land of Israel, and the World to Come. Where do we learn the Torah? As it is said, "To know wisdom and chastening, to perceive the words of understanding" (Proverbs 1:2), and it says, "Happy is the man whom You chasten, O LORD, and teach out of Your Torah" (Psalms 94:12). Where do we learn the Land of Israel? Scripture teaches, "The LORD your God chastens you," and it says, "For the LORD your God brings you into a good land" (Deuteronomy 8:7). Where do we learn the World to Come? Scripture teaches, "For the commandment is a lamp and the Torah is light" and so on (Proverbs 6:23). You may say: Go out and see which path brings a person to the life of the World to Come. You must say: this is sufferings. Rabbi Nehemiah says: Beloved are sufferings, for just as the sacrifices make atonement, so sufferings make atonement. Of sacrifices what does it say? "And it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him" (Leviticus 1:4). Of sufferings what does it say? "And they shall make amends for their iniquity" (Leviticus 26:43). And not only that, but sufferings atone more than sacrifices, because sacrifices are with money while sufferings are with the body. And so it says, "Skin for skin, all that a man has" and so on (Job 2:4). And it once happened that Rabbi Eliezer was ill, and four elders came in to visit him: Rabbi Tarfon, Rabbi Joshua, Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, and Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Tarfon responded and said: My teacher, you are more beloved to Israel than the sphere of the sun, for the sphere of the sun gives light in this world, but you have given us light in this world and in the World to Come. Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah responded and said: You are more beloved to Israel than father and mother, for father and mother bring a person into this world, but you bring us into this world and the World to Come. Rabbi Akiva responded and said: Beloved are sufferings. Rabbi Eliezer said to his students: Support me. Rabbi Eliezer sat up. He said to him: Speak, Akiva. He said: Behold it says, "Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years" and so on (2 Kings 21:1), and it says, "These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah copied out" (Proverbs 25:1). Now did it ever enter Hezekiah king of Judah's mind to teach all Israel Torah and not to teach Torah to his own son Manasseh? Rather say from now: that all the teaching he taught him and all the labor he labored over him availed him nothing, and what availed him? You must say: sufferings, as it is said, "And the LORD spoke to Manasseh and to his people... and when he was in distress he entreated the favor of the LORD his God... and prayed to Him" and so on (2 Chronicles 33:10-13). Thus you have learned that sufferings are beloved. "Gods of silver and gods of gold" (Exodus 20:20): Why is it stated? Because it says, "And you shall make two cherubim of gold" (Exodus 25:18). One might say: behold I will make four; therefore Scripture teaches "gods of gold", if you add to the two they are like gods of gold. Why is "gods of silver" stated? Has it not already said "gods of gold"? Because we find that all the vessels of the eternal House, if they have none of gold, they make them of silver; one might hear that the two cherubim are likewise; therefore Scripture teaches "gods of silver", so that if you change them from gold they are like gods of silver. "You shall not make for yourselves": that you should not say, since the Torah granted permission to make them in the eternal House, behold we shall make them in synagogues and study houses; therefore Scripture teaches "You shall not make for yourselves."

Another interpretation of "You shall not make for yourselves" (Exodus 20:20): that you should not say, behold I will make one for decoration, or in the manner that others do in the provinces; therefore Scripture teaches, "You shall not make for yourselves."

Resh Lakish said: Anyone who appoints a judge who is not fit, it is as though he planted an asherah, as it is said, "Judges and officers" (Deuteronomy 16:18), and adjacent to it, "You shall not plant for yourself an asherah" (Deuteronomy 16:21). And in a place where there is a Torah scholar, it is as though he planted it beside the altar, for it says "the LORD your God," and it says "You shall not make with Me... gods of silver and gods of gold" (Exodus 20:20). This teaches that one should not make even one of wood; rather it permits a god that comes for the sake of silver and for the sake of gold, that is, one appointed for money. (Exodus 20:21) (this is written at remez 373 and at remez 455).

"An altar of earth you shall make for Me" (Exodus 20:21): a distinct altar you shall make for Me, that you should not build it at the outset for the sake of something else. Rabbi Ishmael says: an altar joined to the ground you shall make for Me, that you should not build it upon arches nor upon pillars. Rabbi Nathan says: a hollow altar of earth you shall make for Me, as it is said, "Hollow with boards you shall make it" (Exodus 27:8). Issi ben Akiva says: an altar of bronze filled with earth, as it is said, "For the bronze altar that was before the LORD was too small to hold" and so on (1 Kings 8:64). And was it small? Has it not already said, "Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings" (2 Chronicles 1:6)? And what does "too small" teach? Rather, it teaches that on the day this one was built, that one was hidden away.

In every place where "for Me" is stated, it does not budge, neither in this world nor in the World to Come. Of the priests it is written, "And they shall serve Me as priests" (Exodus 28:41). Of the Levites it is written, "And the Levites shall be Mine" (Numbers 8:14). Of Israel it is written, "For to Me the children of Israel are servants" (Leviticus 25:55). Of the heave offering it is written, "And they shall take for Me an offering" (Exodus 25:2). Of the firstborn it is written, "For Mine is every firstborn" (Numbers 3:13). Of the Sanhedrin it is written, "Gather to Me" (Numbers 11:16). Of the Land of Israel it is written, "For Mine is the land" (Leviticus 25:23). Of Jerusalem it is written, "The city which I have chosen for Me" (1 Kings 11:36). Of the kingdom of the House of David it is written, "For I have seen among his sons a king for Me" (1 Samuel 16:1). Of the Sanctuary, "And they shall make Me a sanctuary" (Exodus 25:8). Of the altar, "An altar of earth you shall make for Me" (Exodus 20:21). Of the offerings, "You shall observe to offer to Me in its appointed time" (Numbers 28:2). Of the anointing oil it is written, "This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me" (Exodus 30:31). Thus, in every place where "for Me" is stated, it does not budge, neither in this world nor in the World to Come.

"And you shall sacrifice upon it" (Exodus 20:21): "upon it" means beside it. Or perhaps "upon it" is meant literally? And logic would suggest so: if the north side of the altar, which is not fit for atonement, is fit for slaughter, then the top of the altar, which is fit for atonement, surely it is right that it be made fit for slaughter. But the inner altar shall prove otherwise, for it is fit for atonement and yet is not fit for slaughter; let it prove regarding the outer altar that, even though it is fit for atonement, it should not be fit for slaughter. No: if you have said this of the inner altar, which does not permit and does not render fit and does not complete the atonement, and therefore is not fit for slaughter, would you say the same of the outer altar, which permits and renders fit and completes the atonement, and therefore should be fit for slaughter? Therefore Scripture teaches, "And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood" and so on (Deuteronomy 12:27): the flesh and the blood upon the top of the altar, but there is no slaughter upon the top of the altar. Rabbi Yose says: even to slaughter upon the top of the altar, and Scripture supports him, as it is said, "An altar of earth you shall make for Me" and so on (Exodus 20:21). One verse says "your burnt offerings and your peace offerings," and another verse says, "And you shall offer your burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood" (Deuteronomy 12:27). How can these two verses be reconciled? Rabbi Yose bar Rabbi Judah said: from the middle of the altar and to the north is as the north, from the middle of the altar and to the south is as the south. And I have only the north of the altar, which is fit for slaughter; from where do I learn the rest of the north of the courtyard? Scripture teaches, "And he shall slaughter the lamb in the place" and so on (Leviticus 14:13), for there is no need for Scripture to say "in the holy place," except to render fit for it the entire northern side.