We might swat them away without a second thought, but according to the Rabbis, even these creatures have a purpose. As we find in Bereshit Rabbah, even these so-called "superfluous" beings are part of creation, and God uses them to carry out His will.
It’s a powerful reminder that everything, no matter how small, is interconnected and plays a role in the grand scheme of things. The Rabbis tell us that the Holy One, blessed be He, executes His missions through all things – "even by means of a serpent, even by means of a gnat, even by means of a frog.”
To illustrate this idea, the text shares a series of fascinating stories.
First, Rabbi Aḥa tells of a man who saw a frog transporting a scorpion across a river. Why? Because, as the story goes, the scorpion was on a mission to kill someone. Once the deed was done, the frog dutifully carried it back. Talk about an unlikely partnership!
Then there's the story Rabbi Pinḥas tells, in the name of Rabbi Ḥanan of Tzippori, about a man who unknowingly saved himself from a serpent's venom by wearing a particular herb as a wreath. The serpent was sent to kill him, but the herb, apparently an antidote, initially thwarted its mission. However, fate, or perhaps divine will, eventually caught up with the man.
Rabbi Yanai, sitting at the entrance to his city, observed a serpent persistently trying to enter. No matter how many times he chased it away, it kept returning. He declared, "This one is on his way to perform a mission." Shortly after, news arrived that someone in the city had been fatally bitten by a snake.
Rabbi Elazar had a similar experience. A Roman rudely interrupted him at the latrine, only to be killed by a serpent soon after. Rabbi Elazar saw this as divine retribution, quoting (Isaiah 43:4): “I placed a man [adam] in your stead” – interpreting "man" as referring to Edom, a symbolic stand-in for the Romans.
These tales highlight a recurring theme: seemingly random events are often part of a larger, divine plan. Even the smallest creatures and most mundane objects can be instruments of God’s will.
Another story recounts how Rabbi Yitzḥak ben Elazar saw a thighbone rolling along the shore of Caesarea, always returning no matter how many times he tried to push it away. He recognized it was “prepared to perform a mission.” Days later, a courier tripped on the bone and died, revealing that he was carrying evil decrees against the Jews of Caesarea.
But perhaps the most dramatic story involves Titus, the Roman emperor who destroyed the Second Temple. The narrative depicts his sacrilegious acts within the Holy of Holies, his boastful claims of defeating God, and his subsequent demise.
The story details how Titus entered the Holy of Holies, desecrated the Temple, and blasphemed against God. He claimed victory over God, boasting that he had defeated Him in His own palace. As he sailed away, a storm arose, but Titus dismissed it, believing that God's power was limited to water.
However, divine retribution was not to be avoided. As the text recounts, God vowed to punish Titus with the smallest of creatures. Upon arriving in Rome, a gnat entered Titus's nose and began to gnaw at his brain, growing to an enormous size. Doctors eventually removed the growth, finding it weighed two pounds. As it withered, Titus withered along with it, until finally, the gnat flew away, and Titus died.
This final story serves as a powerful example of divine justice. Even the mighty Titus, conqueror of Jerusalem, was ultimately brought down by a tiny gnat. It's a stark reminder that no one, no matter how powerful, is beyond the reach of God's judgment.
So, what are we to take away from these stories? They teach us to look beyond the surface, to recognize that everything in creation has a purpose, and that even the smallest of things can play a significant role in the unfolding of divine will. They urge us to be mindful of the interconnectedness of all things, and to appreciate the hidden hand of God at work in the world around us. Perhaps the next time you see a fly, a flea, or a gnat, you'll remember these tales and consider the possibility that it, too, is on a mission.
The Rabbis say: Even matters that you consider superfluous in the world, like flies, fleas, and gnats, they, too, are included in the creation of the world, and through all of them the Holy One blessed be He executes His missions – even by means of a serpent, even by means of a gnat, even by means of a frog. Rabbi Tanḥuma said it in the name of Rabbi Menaḥma, Rabbi Berekhya in the name of Rabbi Ḥelbo: Rabbi Aḥa would relate this incident: A certain man was standing on the river bank. He saw a frog carrying a scorpion and transporting it across the river.15The scorpion was sent to kill someone, and crossed the river in an unnatural manner to do so. After it [the scorpion] performed its mission, it [the frog] took it back to its place. Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Ḥanan of Tzippori: There was an incident involving a certain man who was standing to reap his crop in the Bei Tarfa valley. He saw a stalk of a certain herb, picked it, and crafted it into a wreath for his head. A serpent came and he struck it, killing it. Another man came and stood there to look at the snake. He said: ‘I wonder, who was it who killed this serpent?’ That man said: ‘I killed it.’ He lifted his eyes and saw the stalk of herb that had been crafted into a wreath on his head. He said: ‘Did you really kill it?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ He said: ‘Can you remove that herb from your head?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ Once he removed it he said to him: ‘Can you come over here and lift this serpent with this staff?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ When he approached that serpent, immediately his limbs fell.16The snake had been sent to kill the man. The herb, which apparently contained an antidote to snake venom, saved him from his fate, but eventually the mission was accomplished. Rabbi Yanai was sitting and expounding at the entrance to his city. He saw a serpent slithering and approaching. When he chased it away from one side, it returned at the other side, and when he chased it away from that side, it returned from the other side. He said: This one is on his way to perform a mission. Thereafter, a sound was heard in the city: So-and-so son of so-and-so was bitten by a serpent and died. Rabbi Elazar was sitting, paying a visit to the latrine. A Roman came and expelled him, entered in his place and sat himself down. He [Rabbi Elazar] said: This did not occur for naught. Immediately, a serpent emerged and struck him [the Roman], killing him. He applied to him the verse: “I placed a man [adam] in your stead” (Isaiah 43:4) – I placed Edom in your stead.17The Romans were identified with the people of Edom. Rabbi Yitzḥak ben Elazar was standing and strolling along the shore of the Sea of Caesarea and saw a certain thighbone that was rolling along. He kept pushing it away out of sight, but it kept rolling back. He said: This one is prepared to perform a mission. Several days later, a certain courier passed by, and he stumbled on it and died. They went and examined him and found that he was carrying evil missives regarding the Jews of Caesarea. The wicked Titus entered the Holy of Holies with a sword drawn in his hand and he cut the two curtains. Then he took two harlots and cohabited with them atop the altar. He emerged with his sword full of blood. Some say that it was blood of sacrifices, and some say it was the blood of the goat offered on Yom Kippur. He spoke out with blasphemy and sacrilege.18Saying that he had defeated God and this was His blood. He took all the Temple vessels and wrapped them up in a big bundle.19Using the Temple curtain. He again began to speak out with blasphemy and sacrilege against the most High, saying: ‘There is no comparison between one who wages war with the king in the wilderness and defeats him, and one who wages war with the king in his own palace and defeats him there.’ He went down to his ship. When he set sail, a large wave struck him in the sea. He said: ‘It appears that the God of this nation has power only in the water. He exacted retribution against the generation of Enosh only with water, He exacted retribution against the generation of the Flood only with water, He exacted retribution against Pharaoh and his army only with water. I, too, when I was in His House and His domain He was unable to stand up against me, and now He has confronted me here. He believes that He will kill me in the water.’ The Holy One blessed be He said [an oath] to him: ‘Wicked one, by your life, I will exact retribution from this wicked one [Titus] with a creature that is the smallest of all the creatures I created during the six days of Creation.’ Thereupon, the Holy One blessed be He signaled to the angel of the sea and it calmed from its raging. When he reached Rome, all the residents of Rome emerged and lauded him. When he ascended to Rome [the city], he entered the bathhouse. When he emerged, they poured him a vial of a post-bath elixir with wine to drink. A gnat entered into his nose and began to continuously gnaw at his brain, until it was as large as a two-pound fowl. He [Titus] issued a command, saying: ‘Open up the brain of this man20Titus referred to himself in third person. to ascertain through what instrument the God of the Jews has exacted retribution from this man.’ Thereupon, they called the surgeons, they opened up his brain and removed what was like a two-pound fowl. Rabbi Elazar bar Rabbi Yosei said: ‘I saw in Rome that [they placed] a weight of two pounds on one side [of a balance] and the bird-like growth [of Titus] on the other side, and they were equal in weight. They took it and placed it in a bowl. As it [the growth] withered, he [Titus] withered along with it. [When it returned to its natural size,] the gnat flew away and the soul of the evil Titus flew away [as well].’
