Midrash Tanchuma, Yitro 16

I am the Lord thy God (Exod. 20:1). May it please our master to teach us: If a fire breaks out in a house in which there is a scroll of the Torah and other books, may their owner save them from the fire on the Sabbath? Thus do our masters teach us: All sacred writings must be saved from fire even on the Sabbath, whether they are being used or not. Why did they decree that they must be saved? Because of the honor that is due the laws contained within them. If they were allowed to burn, they would appear to be valueless.

You find that when the Holy One, blessed be He, gave the Torah, it was entirely of fire, as it is said: At His right hand was a fiery law unto them (Deut. 33:2). Our sages stated: The law was of fire, the parchment was of fire, its writings were of fire, the thread was of fire, as it is said: At His right hand was a fiery law. The face of the agent (Moses) became fiery, as is said: And they were afraid to come nigh him (Exod. 34:30). The angels who descended with it were of fire, as it is said: Who makes winds Thy messengers (Ps. 104:4). The mountain burned with fire (Deut. 4:11), and it was given within a fire consuming fire, as it is said: For the Lord thy God is a devouring fire (ibid. 4:24). And upon the earth He made thee to see His great fire (ibid., v. 36). The Divine Word also came forth from the midst of fire. When they beheld the lightning and the burning letters, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: Do not imagine that they have much power, and He began to recite the words I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt have no other gods (Exod. 20:2).18The Ten Commandments. Cf. above, “In the Beginning,” n. Why were they described as gods? R. Yosé said: He did so in order not to give the people of the world the opportunity to say that they were not called by His name because if He had done so, it would have acknowledged that they had power. But they were called by His name, and yet have no power. When were they first called by His name? In the days of Enoch the son of Seth, as it is said: Then began man to call in the name of the Lord (Gen. 4:25). It was then that the Mediterranean Sea rose and inundated a third of the world, and the Holy One, blessed be He, said: Ye have done a new thing in calling yourself by My name, and so I will do something new and call Myself by My name. Therefore Scripture says: That calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth, the Lord is His name (Amos 5:8).

R. Eliezer said: They were called other gods because they fashioned new ones each day. If a man possessed an idol of gold but required the material for some other purpose, he would make himself one of silver instead. If he required the silver, he would make one of brass, and if he needed the brass, he would make one of iron. He would do the same with tin and lead, until he finally constructed it of wood, as it is said: New gods that came up of late (Deut. 32:17).

For the Lord thy God is a devouring fire, a jealous God (ibid. 4:24). A certain philosopher asked R. Gamliel: Why does Scripture say: The Lord thy God is a jealous God? What power do idols possess that He should be jealous of them? After all, a powerful man is jealous only of another powerful man, a wise man of another wise man, a rich man of another rich man, etc. This subject is discussed in the chapter entitled Rabbi Ishmael in Tractate Avodah Zarah.19Avodah Zarah, chap. 4.

Ye shall not do with Me as you do with gods of silver (Exod. 20:20). Do not act toward Me as men do toward those whom they fear. When good fortune comes to them, they honor those they fear, as it is said: Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and offer unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their food plenteous (Hab. 1:16). However, when afflictions befall them, they curse those they fear, as it is said: And it shall come to pass that, when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse by their king and by their god (Isa. 8:21). However, you shall praise Me both for fortune and for misfortune. Thus David said: I will fill up the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord (Ps. 116:13), whether for good or for evil. Then said his wife unto him: “Dost thou still hold fast thine integrity? Blaspheme God, and die!” But he said unto her: “Thou speakest as one of the impious women speaketh. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” (Job. 2:9–10). A man should rejoice over his afflictions more than over his good fortune. Even if man should enjoy good fortune all his life, (this merely indicates that) the sins he committed are not being forgiven. What causes sins to be forgiven? Only suffering.

R. Eliezer the son of Jacob declared: Scripture says: My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, neither spurn thou His correction; for whom the Lord loveth, He correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth (Prov. 3:11–12). What leads a son to please his father? When he chastises him. Hence he said: This is their chastising.

R. Meir stated: Scripture says: And thou shalt consider in thy heart, that as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee (Deut. 8:5). What is the meaning of And thou shalt consider in thy heart? It means that your heart should know that the punishment I have inflicted upon you was not commensurate with the acts you have performed.

R. Nehemiah held: Punishment is desirable, for just as sacrifices are a means of atonement, so is chastisement. Concerning sacrifice it is written: And it shall be accepted for him (Lev. 1:4), and about punishment it is stated: And they shall be paid the punishment of their iniquity (ibid. 26:43). The fact is that punishment is more important (for atonement) than sacrifice. For sacrifices involve property, while punishment involves the body. Thus it says: Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life (Job. 2:4).

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