This week, we're diving into Vayikra Rabbah 27, a fascinating exploration of these very questions, sparked by a seemingly simple verse from Leviticus: "A bull, or a sheep, or a goat, when it is born, shall be seven days under its mother and from the eighth day on, it shall be accepted as a fire offering to the Lord" (Leviticus 22:27).
What does this have to do with the balance of the cosmos? Well, the Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) saw in this verse a profound analogy. "A bull, or a sheep, or a goat" they pondered, connects to the verse, "Your righteousness is like mighty mountains" (Psalms 36:7). Mountains, produce herbs, just as righteous people produce good deeds. Mountains are stable, life-giving. The righteous, similarly, benefit both themselves and others. Vayikra Rabbah cleverly compares this to a golden bell with a pearl clapper. The clapper, representing the reward of the righteous in the World to Come, is hidden, but its sound, the impact of their good deeds, is felt by all. As (Isaiah 3:10) tells us, "Tell the righteous that it is good, as they will eat the fruit of their actions."
But what about the flip side? "Your judgments are vast depths" (Psalms 36:7), the Midrash continues, referring to the wicked. Just as the depths cannot be sown and produce nothing, the wicked lack good deeds and bring distress upon themselves and others. It echoes the sentiment of (Isaiah 3:11): "Woe to the wicked, that he is evil," for himself and for others.
Now, here's where it gets really interesting. The Midrash suggests transposing the verse: "Your righteousness over your judgments is like mighty mountains over vast depths." It's a powerful image, isn't it? The mountains, representing charity (tzedaka), suppress the depths, preventing them from flooding the world. In the same way, charity suppresses punishment, preventing it from overwhelming us. Charity, in this sense, isn't just giving money; it’s about acts of loving-kindness and righteousness that hold back the tide of negativity.
Rabbi Yishmael offers another perspective: The righteous, who follow the Torah given from the mighty mountains (Mount Sinai, of course), receive charity from God like the mighty mountains. But the wicked, who disregard the Torah, face God's exacting justice in the vast depths.
Then we have Rabbi Akiva, who suggests a more nuanced view: God is exacting with both the righteous and the wicked. He collects payment from the righteous in this world for their few misdeeds, ensuring their full reward in the World to Come. Conversely, He bestows peace upon the wicked for their few good deeds, only to exact retribution from them later. It's a complex system of accounting, ensuring ultimate justice.
Rabbi Meir takes a different tack, likening the righteous to their abode, "In good grazing land I will herd them, and on the mountains of the height of Israel will be their pasture" (Ezekiel 34:14). The wicked, however, are likened to theirs: "On the day that he descended to the netherworld I caused mourning; I covered the depths for him" (Ezekiel 31:15).
Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi beautifully illustrates this concept with an analogy: a cover for an earthenware vat is best made of earthenware, not silver or gold. Why? Because it's of the same kind. Similarly, Gehenna, the fiery realm of punishment, is darkness, the depths are darkness, and the wicked are darkness. "Let darkness come and cover darkness," the Midrash states, quoting (Ecclesiastes 6:4): "For he came in futility, and departs in darkness, and his name is covered in darkness."
The Midrash then shifts gears, connecting righteousness to Noah and the ark. The righteousness performed on behalf of Noah in the ark is "like the mighty mountains," as the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat (Genesis 8:4). The judgments inflicted upon his generation were "the vast depths," as "all the wellsprings of the vast depths were breached" (Genesis 7:11). But God remembered Noah, and not just him, but "every beast" with him (Genesis 8:1).
The text then shares two anecdotes: one about Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi's visit to Rome, and the other about Alexander of Macedonia. Rabbi Yehoshua, seeing the opulence and poverty of Rome, reflects on the verse, "Your righteousness is like mighty mountains," and "Your judgments are vast depths." Alexander, encountering wise women and fair judgment in foreign lands, realizes the value of counsel and justice.
The Midrash concludes with a poignant plea: "Master of the universe, we are like man, save us like an animal, because we are drawn after You like an animal." We, despite our flaws, yearn to be drawn to the Garden of Eden, to be "sated by the rich fare of Your House" (Psalms 36:9). Rabbi Elazar ben Rabbi Menaḥem points out that it doesn't say "Your Eden," but "Your Edens," teaching that each righteous person has their own Eden.
Finally, Rabbi Yitzḥak equates the law of man and the law of animal: circumcision on the eighth day for humans (Leviticus 12:3) and acceptance as an offering on the eighth day for animals. It's a final, subtle reminder of the interconnectedness of all things, the intricate balance between righteousness and judgment, and the hope for redemption that lies within us all.
So, what do you take away from this? Is the world ultimately fair? Does righteousness always triumph? Perhaps the key is not to seek perfect balance, but to strive for acts of charity, of tzedakah, that help to tip the scales, just a little, towards the mountains and away from the depths.
“A bull, or a sheep, or a goat, when it is born, shall be seven days under its mother and from the eighth day on, it shall be accepted as a fire offering to the Lord” (Leviticus 22:27). “A bull, or a sheep, or a goat” – that is what is written: “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains” (Psalms 36:7). The mountains produce herbs and the righteous have good deeds. Alternatively, “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains” – just as mountains are fit to be sown and produce fruit, so, the righteous produce fruits for themselves and for others. To what is the matter comparable? To a golden bell whose clapper is of pearls;1The clapper is heard but is hidden from sight. So too, the reward of the righteous in the World to Come is not perceived or shared with others. However, all benefit from the righteous in this world, as all benefit from the beauty of the golden bell (Etz Yosef). so, the righteous benefit themselves and benefit others, as it is stated: “Tell the righteous that it is good, as they will eat the fruit of their actions” (Isaiah 3:10). “Your judgments are vast depths” (Psalms 36:7), these are the wicked. Just as the depths cannot be sown and do not produce fruits, so, the wicked do not have good deeds and they do not produce fruits. Rather, they distress themselves and others, as it is stated: “Woe to the wicked, that he is evil” (Isaiah 3:11), evil for himself and evil for others. “Your righteousness [tzidkatekha] is like mighty mountains; [Your judgments are vast depths].” Transpose the verse and expound it: Your righteousness over your judgments is like mighty mountains over vast depths. Just as these mountains suppress the depths so they do not inundate the world, so too, charity [tzedaka] suppresses punishment so it will not come to the world. “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains” – just as these mountains are endless, so too, there is no end to the reward given to the righteous. “Your judgments are vast depths” – just as the depths are unquantifiable, so the punishment of the wicked in the future is unquantifiable. Another matter, “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains.” Rabbi Yishmael says: The righteous, who fulfill the Torah that was given from the mighty mountains, the Holy One blessed be He performs with them charity like the mighty mountains. But the wicked, who do not fulfill the Torah that was given from the mighty mountains, the Holy One blessed be He is exacting with them to the vast depths. Rabbi Akiva says: He is exacting with these and those. From the righteous He collects payment in this world for the small number of wicked deeds that they performed in this world in order to give them a good reward in the future, and He bestows peace upon the wicked and repays them for the small number of good deeds that they performed in this world in order to exact retribution from them in the future. Rabbi Meir says: The righteous were likened to their abode, as it is stated: “In good grazing land I will herd them, and on the mountains of the height of Israel will be their pasture” (Ezekiel 34:14). The wicked were likened to their abode, as it is stated: “So said the Lord God: On the day that he descended to the netherworld I caused mourning; I covered the depths for him” (Ezekiel 31:15). Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi said: This is analogous to the fact that one crafts a cover for an earthenware vat neither of silver, nor of gold, nor of other metals, but rather, of earthenware, because it is of the same kind. So, the Holy One blessed be He said: Gehenna is darkness, as it is written: “Let their way be dark and slippery” (Psalms 35:6); the depths are darkness, as it is stated: “Darkness was upon the surface of the depths” (Genesis 1:2); and the wicked are darkness, as it is stated: “Their actions are in the darkness” (Isaiah 29:15). Let darkness come and cover darkness, as it is stated: “For he came in futility, and departs in darkness, and his name is covered in darkness” (Ecclesiastes 6:4). Another matter, “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains.” Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon said: The righteousness that you performed on behalf of Noah in the ark “is like the mighty mountains,” as it is stated: “The ark rested on the mountains of Ararat” (Genesis 8:4). Your judgments that You performed with his generation, You were exacting with them to “the vast depths,” as it is stated: “On that day all the wellsprings of the vast depths were breached” (Genesis 7:11). When You remembered him, you did not remember him alone, but rather, “God remembered Noah and every beast” (Genesis 8:1). When Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi went to Rome, he saw there marble pillars covered with tapestries so they would not crack in the heat or contract in the cold. He saw a certain poor man there with a reed mat beneath him and a reed mat on his back.2Such a mat was hard and uncomfortable to sit or lie on, but also did not provide good protection from the elements. Regarding the pillars he read: “Your righteousness is like mighty mountains.” Where You bestow, You bestow benevolently. Regarding the poor man he read: “Your judgments are vast depths.” Where You strike, You are very exacting. Alexander of Macedonia went to the king at the end of the earth, beyond the mountains of darkness. He went to a certain province named Carthage in which there were only women. They went out before him and said to him: ‘If you engage in battle with us and overcome us, your reputation will emerge to the world as one who destroyed a district of women. If we engage in battle with you and overcome you, your reputation will emerge to the world as one who was overcome by women, and you will no longer stand before kings.’ When he went out, he wrote on the gate of the city wall: ‘I, Alexander of Macedonia, was a fool until I came to the province of Carthage and learned counsel from women.’ He went to another province named Africa and they emerged before him with golden apples, golden pomegranates, and golden bread. He said: ‘What is this, is gold eaten in your land?’ They said to him: ‘Did you not have it in your land?’3Do you not have food in your land, that you came here for regular food? He said to them: ‘I did not come to see your products, I came to see your judicial system.’ While they were sitting, two men came for judgment before the king. One said: ‘My master the king: I purchased a ruin from this man, and I dug, and I found buried treasure in it. I said to him: Take your treasure, as I purchased a ruin, I did not purchase treasure.’ The other said: ‘Just as you fear the punishment for robbery, so do I fear it. When I sold it to you, I sold you the ruin and everything in it.’ The king addressed one of them and said to him: ‘Do you have a son?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He addressed the other, he said to him: ‘Do you have a daughter?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He said to them: ‘Go and marry one to the other, and both of them can partake of the treasure.’ Alexander of Macedonia became astonished. The king said to him: ‘Why are you astonished? Did I not judge well?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He said to him: ‘If this case had been in your land, what would you have done?’ He said to him: ‘Beheaded this one and beheaded that one and the treasure would have gone to the king’s palace.’ [The king] said: ‘Does the sun shine in your land?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ ‘Does rain fall in your land?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He said to him: ‘Are there, perhaps, small domesticated animals in your land?’ [He said: ‘Yes.’] He said to him: ‘May that man despair,4The king said to Alexander: That man, i.e., you, should despair. it is only thanks to the small domesticated animals that the sun shines upon you and the rain falls upon you. Due to the small domesticated animals you survive.’ That is what is written: “The Lord will save man and animal” (Psalms 36:7); man, thanks to animal, the Lord will save. Israel said: ‘Master of the universe, we are like man, save us like an animal,5Although we are human and sin with full knowledge of the consequences, save us like you would an animal, which cannot be held accountable for its actions. because we are drawn after You like an animal.’ That is what is written: “Draw me after you, we will run” (Song of Songs 1:4). To where are we drawn after you? To the Garden of Eden; that is what is written: “They are sated by the rich fare of Your House; You give them to drink from the stream of Your delights [adanekha]” (Psalms 36:9).6The midrash interprets the word adanekha to mean Your Edens. Rabbi Elazar ben Rabbi Menaḥem said: Your Eden [ednekha] is not written here, but rather, Your Edens [adanekha]. This teaches that each and every righteous person has an Eden of his own. “The Lord will save man and animal.” Rabbi Yitzḥak said: The law of man and the law of animal are equal. The law of man: “On the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3). The law of animal: “From the eighth day on, it shall be accepted [as a fire offering to the Lord].”
