SHEMAIAH AND ABṬALYON RECEIVED THE TRADITION FROM THE PRECEDING. SHEMAIAH SAID: LOVE WORK AND HATE PUBLIC OFFICE, AND BECOME NOT KNOWN TO THE RULING POWER.LOVE WORK. What does this mean? It teaches [22b] that a man should love work and not hate it; for just as the Torah was given [to man] by a covenant, so work too was given by a covenant, as it is stated, Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work; but the seventh day is a sabbath unto the Lord thy God.1Ex. 20, 9f. This verse, however, does not contain the word ‘covenant’ required for the purpose of the analogy, and the commentators substitute Ex. 20XI, 15, Six days shall work be done; but on the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, etc., concluding with a perpetual covenant (ibid. 16).R. ‘Aḳiba said: There are times when a man does work [on the Sabbath] and escapes the penalty of death, and there are times when a man does no work [on the Sabbath] and incurs death by Heaven. How can this be? If a man sat the whole week doing no work and on the eve of the Sabbath, having nothing to eat, took of the sacred money which is in his possession and used it for his needs, he thereby incurred the penalty of death by Heaven.2For misappropriating Temple funds. On the other hand, if he is at work on the Temple building, although he receives sacred money in payment which he uses for his needs, he escapes the penalty of death.R. Dosethai said: When do we find that if a man does no work all the six days he will eventually have to work all the seven days? If he is idle all the days of the week doing no work, when the Sabbath eve arrives he will have nothing to eat. He then goes forth and joins a band of robbers; he is caught and put in chains, and is now compelled to work [also] on the Sabbath. All this is the sequel of his not working during the six days of the week.R. Simeon b. Eleazar said: Even Adam, the first man, did not taste a morsel until he had done some work, as it is stated, And He put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it,3Gen. 2, 15. and only then [is it recorded], Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat.4ibid. 16.R. Ṭarfon said: Even the Holy One, blessed be He, did not cause His Presence to dwell in Israel until they had performed some work, as it is stated, And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.5Ex. 25, 8.R. Judah b. Bathyra said: What should a man do when he has no work to undertake? If he has a dilapidated courtyard or a waste field let him go and attend to it;6Rather than be idle. for it is stated, Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work.7ibid. XX, 9. Why does the verse add the words and do all thy work? To include the case of a man who has dilapidated courtyards or waste fields, that he should go and occupy himself with them.R. Jose8So in all MSS.; V reads: R. Ṭarfon. said: No man dies except in idleness, as it is stated, And he expired, and was gathered unto his people.9Gen. 49, 33. The term he expired is interpreted as ‘he ceased to work’, and when idleness set in death follows. Schechter suggests that the proof-text should read, And they shall die without knowledge (Job 36, 12) which follows immediately on If they hearken and work [E.V., serve Him], they shall spend their days in prosperity (ibid. 11). This is Scriptural proof that work leads to prosperity, idleness to death. Hence if a man had a seizure, came under the care of his physician and died, he only died because he was in idleness.10i.e. through inability to work. If a man was standing [idly] on the top of a roof or a castle or a building or by the river’s edge and fell and died, he only died because he was in idleness.We have heard this11The duty to work. in connection with men, but whence in connection with women? As it is stated, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.12Ex. 36, 6. And whence in connection with children? As it is stated, So the people were restrained from bringing.13ibid.; the term people includes the young.R. Nathan said: At the time that Moses was engaged upon the work of the Tabernacle, he declined to consult with the princes of Israel. Consequently they sat in silence, thinking to themselves, ‘The time will soon come when Moses will have need of us’. When they heard the proclamation made in the camp which declared, The stuff they had was sufficient,14ibid. 7. they exclaimed, ‘Alas, we have had no share in the work of the Tabernacle!’ They arose and added a large contribution of their own accord, as it is stated, And the rulers brought the onyx stones.15ibid. XXXV, 27.

AND HATE PUBLIC OFFICE. What does this mean? It teaches that no man should himself put a crown on his head, but others should put it on him; as it is stated, Let another man praise thee and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.16Prov. 27, 2.R. ‘Aḳiba said: Whoever exalts himself by his knowledge of Torah, to what is he like? To a carcase which lies in the road, anybody passing by puts his hand to his nose and moves far away from it; as it is stated, If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast planned devices, lay thy hand upon thy mouth.17ibid. XXX, 32. Ben ‘Azzai said to him, ‘Interpret the text in this sense: If a man debases himself for the sake of Torah, eats dry dates, wears shabby clothes, and sits and keeps guard at the door of the wise, though every passer-by may think him a fool, in the end you will find that the whole Torah is within him’.R. Jose said: Go down and you will be up,18A fine pithy saying. The more humble a man is, the higher he stands in the estimation of his fellows. go up and you will be down. He who exalts himself by his knowledge of Torah will in the end be brought low; he who humbles himself by his knowledge of Torah will in the end be exalted.

AND BECOME NOT KNOWN TO THE RULING POWER. What does this mean? It teaches that a man should not wish to have a reputation [for wealth] with the ruling powers,19The harsh sentiments expressed here refer particularly to the cruel and despotic rule of the Roman local governors in the Herodian era. because if this happens they will eventually have their eyes upon him, put him to death and confiscate all his wealth. [Similarly, a man should not cause a reputation for wealth to be spread abroad about his neighbour among the ruling powers.]20Inserted by GRA. This is the maxim for the illustration that follows. Thus if a man meets his friend in the market and exclaims, ‘May the Holy One, blessed be He, bless that man [still more]! Only to-day there came from his establishment a hundred oxen, a hundred sheep and a hundred goats!’, an inspector may hear it and proceed to inform the governor, who has the man’s house surrounded and confiscates all his wealth. Of such a man Scripture says, He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice … it is counted a curse to him.21ibid. XXVII, 14. E.V., it shall be counted.Another interpretation of AND BECOME NOT KNOWN TO THE RULING POWER. A man’s friend is sitting in the market and the former exclaims, ‘May the Holy One, blessed be He, bestow still more blessings upon him! To-day he brought into his house so many kors of wheat and so many kors of barley!’ Robbers hear of it and come and surround his house, taking away all his wealth, so that in the morning he is left with nothing. Of such a man Scripture says, He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, etc.Another interpretation of AND BECOME NOT KNOWN TO THE RULING POWER. What does it mean? It teaches that a man should not intend [to occupy office] in order to say, ‘I am the city’s governor’, or ‘I am the deputy-governor’, because they rob Israel.22A curious passage and its meaning is obscure. Perhaps the explanation is to be sought in Midrash Rabbah, Genesis 76, §6 (Sonc. ed., p. 706), which tells that the Romans used to offer petty local governorships to wealthy Jews in order to hold them responsible for the collection of the taxes and other impositions. As in many cases the taxes were unjustly levied, they who occupied these offices were assisting in robbing their own brethren.

Another interpretation: A man should not have the intention [to occupy] a governmental position, for though in the beginning they show him favour, ultimately they trouble him sorely.23lit. ‘they open to him a door that is pleasant … a door that is harsh’.

ABṬALYON SAID: WISE MEN, BE HEEDFUL OF YOUR WORDS, lest men teach doctrines in your name not in accord with the Torah, and YOU THEREBY INCUR THE PENALTY OF EXILE, AND ARE EXILED TO A PLACE OF EVIL WATERS.24i.e. exiled among the nations where pernicious and heretical ideas are current. Moreover, the disciples who come after you may also teach doctrines in your name not in accord with the Torah, and they too incur the penalty of exile and are exiled to a place of evil waters.25V repeats ‘and you thereby incur’, etc. What is to be understood by ‘evil waters’? That which is implied in the verse, But they mingled themselves with the nations, and learned their works.26Ps. 106, 35. ‘Evil waters’ has to be interpreted metaphorically. Others say: The phrase ‘evil waters’ bears its literal significance.27Unhealthy waters, productive of physical ills. Another view is: [The meaning is] lest they be exiled for hard labour.