Take the verse from Ecclesiastes (10:8): “One who digs a pit will fall into it; and one who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him.” It's a powerful image. But what does it really mean?
Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on Ecclesiastes, unpacks this verse with some pretty striking examples. It's fascinating to see how the rabbis of old took these biblical lessons and applied them to the real-life dramas unfolding around them.
First up: “One who digs a pit will fall into it” is applied to none other than the wicked Pharaoh of the Exodus story. Remember his infamous decree: “Every son who is born [you shall cast him into the Nile]” (Exodus 1:22)? Well, the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) connects this directly to Pharaoh's downfall, stating, "He will fall into it – as it is stated: 'He shook Pharaoh and his people in the Red Sea'” (Psalms 136:15). That’s poetic justice if I’ve ever heard it.
And the examples don't stop there. The Midrash sees Haman, the villain of the Purim story, in this same light. Haman’s plot "to destroy, to kill, and to eliminate" ((Esther 3:1)3) the Jewish people? It backfired spectacularly. "Will fall into it – as it is stated: 'His wicked intentions will return…upon his head, and he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows'" (Esther 9:25). Talk about digging your own grave!
But what about that second part of the verse? "One who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him." Here, the Midrash turns to the story of Dina, Jacob's daughter. While her father and brothers were immersed in study, Dina went out "to see the daughters of the land" (Genesis 34:1). According to the text, this led to her encounter with Shechem ben Ḥamor, who the Midrash equates to a serpent. It's a fascinating connection, given that the word "Hivite" (as in, Shechem the Hivite) is related to the Aramaic word ḥivya, meaning serpent.
The Midrash vividly describes Shechem’s actions: "Shekhem ben Ḥamor saw her… He took her… He lay with her… and he raped her" (Genesis 34:2). The phrase “He took her” is interpreted as “he seduced her with words,” referencing (Hosea 14:3), "Take words with you." Ouch. Dina's choice to venture beyond the protective "fence" of her family's values, in this reading, led to devastating consequences.
These stories are powerful, but they can also feel a little…distant. So let’s bring it closer to the ground. The text then shifts to the story of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai, a towering figure in Jewish mysticism.
Rabbi Shimon and his son, Rabbi Elazar, famously hid in a cave for thirteen years to escape Roman persecution. We’re told they survived on carobs and dates. Imagine that! After all that time, Rabbi Shimon emerged and witnessed a trapper hunting birds. He noticed that the trapper only succeeded when a "Divine Voice" declared "Success!" and failed when it declared "Failure!" This led Rabbi Shimon to conclude that even a bird's fate is in God's hands, let alone a human being's. This seemingly small observation underscores the profound idea that nothing happens without divine decree.
Feeling the need for healing after their years in the cave, they went to the hot springs of Tiberias. According to Etz Yosef, the conditions in the cave had led them to suffer from skin ailments. After being healed, Rabbi Shimon felt compelled to "do good" for the residents, mirroring the actions of Jacob, who, as (Genesis 33:18) says, "encamped [vayiḥan] before the city," which the rabbis interpret as establishing a market and selling goods at low prices.
Rabbi Shimon then took it upon himself to purify Tiberias, which had become ritually impure due to unmarked graves from the Roman conquest. He used lupines to identify where bodies were buried. (Talk about a dedicated community leader!) But here’s where things get interesting…
A Samaritan tried to trick Rabbi Shimon by burying a corpse in a street that had already been purified. When confronted, Rabbi Shimon, through divine inspiration, knew the truth. He then declared, "I decree that the one who is lying shall stand and that the one standing will lie," or, according to another version, "I decree that the one above will descend and the one below will ascend." And that’s exactly what happened!
Later, Rabbi Shimon overheard Nakai the scribe mocking him for the incident. Rabbi Shimon, deeply offended, declared that if Tiberias was not destined to be purified, may certain curses befall him. He then cursed Nakai, stating that he had "breached the fence of the Torah scholars" and that "a serpent will bite him." And, tragically, it came to pass.
Finally, Rabbi Shimon encountered a man harvesting aftergrowths during the Shmita (Sabbatical) year, when such activity is forbidden. The man argued that Rabbi Shimon himself permitted it, citing a Mishna (Sheviit 9:1) where Rabbi Shimon allows aftergrowths except for cabbage. Rabbi Shimon countered that his colleagues disagreed with him, and, invoking the verse about breaching a fence, the man was punished.
So, what are we to take away from all these stories? Are they just ancient tales with no relevance today? I don't think so. They remind us that our actions, both good and bad, have consequences. That the choices we make, the "fences" we choose to breach, can have a profound impact, not just on ourselves but on those around us. It's a potent reminder to tread carefully and to consider the ripple effect of our decisions. It's a call to build fences of integrity and kindness, rather than tearing them down. And maybe, just maybe, to avoid digging any unnecessary pits.
“One who digs a pit will fall into it; and one who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him” (Ecclesiastes 10:8). “One who digs a pit will fall into it” – this is the wicked Pharaoh, who said: “Every son who is born [you shall cast him into the Nile]” (Exodus 1:22). “He will fall into it” – as it is stated: “He shook Pharaoh and his people in the Red Sea” (Psalms 136:15). Another matter: “One who digs a pit” – this is Haman, as it is stated: “To destroy, to kill, and to eliminate” (Esther 3:13). “Will fall into it” – as it is stated: “His wicked intentions will return […upon his head, and he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows]” (Esther 9:25). “One who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him” – this is Dina. When her father and her brothers were sitting in the study hall, she went out “to see the daughters of the land” (Genesis 34:1). She brought upon herself that Shekhem ben Ḥamor the Hivite, who is called a serpent,37Hivite is related to the Aramaic word ḥivya, which means serpent. consorted with her and bit her, as it is written: “Shekhem ben Ḥamor saw her…” (Genesis 34:2). “He took her” (Genesis 34:2) – he seduced her with words, as it is stated: “Take words with you” (Hosea 14:3). “He lay with her” (Genesis 34:2) – with natural intercourse; “and he raped her” (Genesis 34:2) – with unnatural intercourse. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai and Rabbi Elazar his son went into hiding in a cave in Pekiin for thirteen years during a period of religious persecution. They would eat carobs and dates. At the conclusion of thirteen years, Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai emerged and sat at the entrance to the cave. He saw a trapper placing his traps to trap birds. He heard a Divine Voice saying: ‘Success,’ and [a bird] was trapped. He heard a Divine Voice a second time, saying: ‘Failure,’ and [a bird] escaped. He said: Even a bird, without a divine decree, will not escape; all the more so the soul of a person.38Rabbi Shimon was saying: Since it is in God’s hands whether or not we will be caught, we do not need to continue hiding in the cave (Etz Yosef). [Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai said to his son:] ‘Let us descend and be healed in the water of the hot springs of Tiberias.’39Apparently conditions in the cave led them to suffer from skin ailments, and they hoped the hot springs would heal their skin (Etz Yosef). They descended and were healed in the water of the hot springs of Tiberias. They said: We must do good, and benefit the residents of this place, just as Jacob our patriarch did, as it is stated: “He encamped [vayiḥan]40This is expounded as a reference to both market [ḥanut] and favor [ḥanina]. before the city” (Genesis 33:18), [indicating] that he established a market and sold to them at low prices. They established a market and sold to them at low prices. He said: We must purify Tiberias.41During the Roman conquest there were many casualties who were buried in unmarked graves, causing Tiberias to lose its presumptive status of purity. What did he do? He took lupines and scattered them in the street, and any place that a corpse was buried, it rose.42It became visible on the surface of the ground. A certain Samaritan saw him. He said: Am I not able to ridicule this Jewish elder? What did he do? He took a corpse and buried it in a street that they had purified. Some say it was [in the market] of the barrel makers and some say in the market of the sack makers. He came and said to [Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai]: ‘Did you purify such and such street?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He said to him: ‘And if I produce a corpse for you from it?’ He said: ‘Pull it out and show me.’ Immediately, Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai saw through divine inspiration that he had buried it there; he said: ‘I decree that the one who is lying shall stand and that the one standing will lie.’ Some say [that he said]: ‘I decree that the one above will descend and the one below will ascend.’ And so it occurred to him. He departed and passed before that synagogue in Migdal and heard the voice of Nakai the scribe: ‘Did ben Yoḥai purify Tiberias?’43He was mocking Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai because of the corpse found on the street he had already purified. [Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai] said: ‘ , let [such and such] come upon me if I do not have traditions as numerous as the hairs on my head that this [city of] Tiberias is destined to be purified and will be available to those who partake of teruma, with the exception of this and that.’44Only these streets will remain impure. He did not believe him. [Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai] said to [Nakai]: ‘You have breached the fence of the Torah scholars, “and one who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him,”’ and so it occurred to him. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai was passing by during the Sabbatical Year; he saw a certain person who was harvesting aftergrowths45These are grain and vegetables that grow on their own without cultivation. of the Sabbatical Year. He said to him: ‘But is it not the Sabbatical Year?’ He said to him: ‘But is it not you who permits it? Did we not learn: [Rabbi Shimon says:] All aftergrowths are permitted except for the aftergrowths of cabbage, because there is nothing corresponding to them in the growths of the field?’46Mishna Sheviit 9:1. Since cabbage does not grow wild in the field, one must assume that it was cultivated in violation of the laws of the Sabbatical Year. [Rabbi Shimon] said to him: ‘But do my colleagues not disagree with me?’47The Sages in the Mishna prohibit consumption of even uncultivated annual crops that grow during the Sabbatical Year. He read in his regard: “And one who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him,” and so it occurred to him.
